Fires Within
by Gmariam
Summary: 'He was fire, and the fire was him, and it was all he needed at that moment. The flames swirled around him and wrapped him in a blanket of heat and security.' A different kind of post-Meat story, in which secrets are revealed, and Jack and Ianto must come to terms with everything that's happened.
1. Chapter One: Discovery

Chapter One - Discovery

Ianto Jones was exhausted, upset, and ready to break.

Those words— _You all think it's cold and lonely out there, but it's not, not for me_ and _I would_ —resonated throughout the Hub, choking the air with tension. Ianto knew the others felt it too, like a kick in the gut that sucked all their breath away. Owen looked anywhere but at Jack and Gwen, his face a mixture of pissed off and annoyed. Tosh glanced at Ianto, eyes wide and filled with hurt.

To a point, he understood Jack's words, though they still bothered him; they would all miss a valued team member, and Ianto didn't kid himself that Gwen meant more to Jack than the rest of them. No, it was Gwen's words that stung more. And even then, he also understood her threat to leave, because there had been a time when he would have left Torchwood without looking back as well—several times, in fact. No, it was, as usual, her callous, cruel dismissal of the rest of the team, of their lives and their feelings—or perceived lack of both—that irritated and angered him more.

He was already on edge from everything they'd been through: bringing in Rhys, heading out to the warehouse in secret, getting captured, tied up, and almost killed. The adrenaline rush that came with taking out the remaining men in the warehouse had left him exhausted, almost too much to begin the incineration of the evidence. But he had sent the others ahead, forced himself to summon as much power as he could, and burned the warehouse down to the ground in as controlled a burn as he could manage. Tosh had run interference so that the fire department did not arrive to put it out before all the evidence was destroyed; unfortunately she had not been able to stop Jack from returning to the scene and finally finding out Ianto's secret.

The look on Jack's face as Ianto had stood within the swirling clouds of flame and ash, letting it surround him like a blanket, was one Ianto would never forget: shock, followed by fear, anger, and hurt. He hadn't been able to endure it for long and had turned away from Jack, raising his hand and accelerating the burn to a blistering, crackling end with a single, concentrated thought that all but drained him.

When he had stepped out of the smoke, the warehouse now nothing but a charred skeleton, Jack had simply stared at him before abruptly turning to leave. Ianto had seen the quiver of anger in Jack's chin, however, and knew he'd made a tremendous mistake. He should have told Jack earlier, should have done the burn the normal way, should have…should have…

But he hadn't, and it was likely all over now. There would be consequences, not only to his budding but undefined relationship with Jack, but quite likely to his career and possibly his life as well. This was still Torchwood, after all, and he'd messed up almost as badly as he had a year ago with Lisa, and possibly worse. If he'd escaped both the Retcon and bullet last time, he wasn't sure he would now. They'd been silent during the ride back to the Hub, arriving just as Owen was finishing with Rhys.

Of course Gwen didn't want to Retcon Rhys. Of course she stood up to Jack. Of course Jack gave in. Gwen's words hurt because she accused them of having no one that they cared about, of not being able to understand what she went through when she kept secrets or watched her fiancé walk into danger. She assumed it was cold and lonely for them all, but it wasn't like that for Ianto. He cared more than he wanted to admit for the small team who had become his family—and even more so for Jack, though that was definitely never coming up in conversation— and now he was more scared than ever that he would loose them all.

Jack's words hurt for completely different reasons, though they were reasons Ianto had grown resigned to months ago and tried to set aside with everything else he was feeling about Jack.

Gwen stormed out, while Jack turned away and stalked back into his office. He grabbed a bottle of water from Ianto with a look of barely controlled anger and pain, though Ianto wasn't sure which was directed at him and which at Gwen. "We need to talk."

"Yes, sir," Ianto replied, his voice equally low. Jack narrowed his eyes at the use of the formal address.

"Later. Right now, get yourself looked at," he said, his voice slightly softer. He did not glance at Ianto, but continued to his desk, sat down, and turned on the CCTV feeds. Ianto leaned against the door, running his hand through his hair as he finished the drink he'd poured earlier to calm his nerves.

Glancing back at Jack and knowing it was pointless to stay while Jack brooded, Ianto walked out, setting the empty glass next to his computer. "I'll be downstairs," he said, and left without waiting for any response from the others. If the looks they had given him were any indication, he couldn't handle Tosh's pity or Owen's righteous anger. He had his own miasma of feelings to deal with.

He thought he would go to the archives and busy himself with whatever needed to be done there, including writing up the day's unfortunate end, but instead his feet carried him farther and farther into the depths of the Hub as his mind wandered to darker and darker places. He was upset with Jack, he was furious with Gwen, and he was angry at himself.

He hated keeping secrets from Jack and the team again, but he'd found it harder and harder to say anything the longer he kept his strange ability with fire to himself. When Jack had come back from his time with the Doctor, Ianto had been too worried about their new relationship to say anything. He had once again he found himself hiding something from Jack, though this time he wanted to tell him, but couldn't find the words. Rarely using his power didn't help; the guilt remained. The logical part of his mind believed Jack would be accepting and understanding, but the emotional part of his heart feared losing his job, his life, and Jack.

Yet now the choice had been taken from him, and Jack knew about him. Again. Anxiety for his future and resentment over Gwen's words as well as Jack's response to them fueled his steps. His anger prompted him to continue even when he did not recognize where he was. He didn't care; he needed to get away. He felt an awful pressure building within him, the need to lash out and let go of his feelings, somehow, somewhere. Almost running down the dank stone corridors, Ianto longed to scream out his frustration, until he burst around a corner and found himself in a large chamber he had never seen before and stood gasping at the unexpected sight.

It was easily twice as big as the main part of the Hub, a cavern beneath the cliffs that smelled strongly of the sea. It was cold and empty, dark and damp and utterly bleak. It was also perfect, exactly what he needed, and Ianto felt his lips curl into a sneer as he strode into the center of the space and glanced around, feeling the power build within him in spite of his fatigue from the earlier burn at the warehouse.

Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and let loose his power. He could feel the heat radiate around him as flames sprang up throughout the cavern, and he let it kiss and caress him, knowing it would not hurt him. Eyes closed, he pictured the scene in his mind's eye, raising first one hand and then the other so that the flames danced wildly around him. He thought about throwing his head back and laughing, but settled for turning slowly instead, letting his power flow freely but with a controlled violence. Because he was always in control, and he would not lose it now. Not because of Jack, or Gwen, or any other number of things he had experienced that day.

He was fire, and the fire was him, and it was all he needed at that moment. The flames swirled around him and wrapped him in a blanket of heat and security. It still felt strange, this power he had developed and the even stranger ability of his body to withstand it. It had slowly become more familiar and less frightening, and he embraced it fully now, replacing the cold feeling in his heart with the warmth of the flames around him.

That was how Jack found him, arms splayed out beside him as fire danced along the edges of the cavern and threw shadows into sharp relief along the walls. Ianto brought the flames down as soon as he sensed Jack's presence, though he did not douse them completely.

"So that really was you at the abbatoir," Jack said softly, walking slowly into the center of the circle where Ianto stood alone with his powers still twinkling around them. "Can you turn it on and off?"

Ianto opened his eyes, met Jack's impassive gaze, and raised his hand, sending the flames racing toward the ceiling of the cavern. He noticed Jack's tiny twitch and sighed sadly as he glanced away. Jack was scared—scared of him, Ianto Jones! How utterly ridiculous. He brought the flames back down again so that they were bathed in a steady orange glow.

"Thanks. It was getting a bit hot in here." Jack came closer, hands tucked into his pockets. Ianto folded arms his over his chest, not caring what message his body language sent. He was scared and angry, and he wanted Jack to know it without having to spell it out.

"Was there something you needed, sir?" he asked stiffly, reverting to formality and hoping it stung. Jack merely nodded.

"I said we'd talk later," he replied. "Now's as good a time as any."

Ianto cocked an eyebrow. "Not going to follow Gwen on the CCTV and brood all night?"

Again Jack's jaw twitched at the verbal blow, and he crossed his arms over his chest, mirroring Ianto's defensive posture. "Nope. Thought I'd come see what the hell was going on with the rest of my team. One threatened to leave, one cussed me out upstairs, one is giving me the cold shoulder, and one is down here blowing up an old smuggler's cave."

Ianto glanced around, curious in spite of himself. "Is that what it was?" he asked.

"Most likely." Jack shrugged. "Torchwood thought about using it for something, but it's awfully dark and cold down here, so we always left it for another day."

Ianto was silent. "I wasn't blowing it up," he said. Jack raised an eyebrow.

"Could have fooled me," Jack murmured. Ianto had to bite back the reply of, "Already did, sir," knowing that it would only make things far, far worse.

Jack stepped cautiously next to Ianto, hands now tucked into his pockets as he gazed around the cavern, small flames dancing in the shadows. "So, more secrets then?" When Ianto simply inclined his head, Jack sighed, sounding disappointed. "Always more secrets."

"It's Torchwood, sir," Ianto replied. "We all have them." He did not look at Jack, did not want to look at the man next to him. Something inside him was both terrified and furious; it was as if all the fear and anxiety he'd bottled up for so many months was threatening to burst from him. And that felt almost exhilarating, to finally be able to let go of it.

"And what do you suppose Torchwood would do with something like this?" Jack murmured. Ianto whirled on him.

"You're Torchwood, so what do _you_ plan to do?"

Jack didn't flinch in the face of Ianto's harsh words. In fact, he raised an eyebrow as he replied. "That depends. What do you want me to do?"

Ianto was silent as he considered his answer, but he did not have one. He had thought about this moment so many times, the day that Jack found out about him, but he had never thought past the confrontation to the inevitable consequences, too awful to contemplate. "I don't know," he answered honestly, then shook his head with a bitter laugh. "It doesn't matter."

"Why not?" asked Jack, pouncing on the opening immediately. "Why doesn't it matter?"

"Because you'll do what you have to do," Ianto said. "The right thing to do."

He could feel rather than see Jack nodding next to him. "You could stop me, of course."

Ianto stepped back, surprised. "What?"

Jack answered with a feral grin. "You can stop almost anything now, I imagine. Raise your hand and poof! Problem solved with a burst of flame and a puff of smoke."

"No," Ianto whispered, turning away. "It's not like that. I'm not like that…" He trailed off, glancing down at his hands. Is that what Jack thought of him already? That Ianto was a violent psychopath? The thought hurt more than anything and reignited his resentment. He had hoped Jack would react with understanding, not condemnation.

"You're not what?" Jack asked, breathing his words quietly behind him. "You're not a fire-breathing monster? A genetic aberration?" He paused and whispered right into Ianto's ear. "A freak of nature?"

Ianto gasped as he moved back and turned to face Jack. "I'm not a monster!" he snapped. "And if I am a freak of nature, I'd expect you of all people to understand."

"I don't shoot fire from my palms," Jack returned calmly, barely catching his balance.

"Neither do I!" Ianto shouted. "I can create it, control it, manipulate it. I don't breathe it or shoot it from my fingertips."

"Still freaky," said Jack, casual air so infuriating Ianto couldn't help but lash out. He pushed Jack away from him as hard as he could, tempted to draw back and punch him, his hand balling into a fist at his side.

"You're not one to talk!" he ground out, then turned and began pacing, his breathing quick with fury. He let the flames around him flicker, an outlet for his feelings, hoping to rattle Jack.

"You're right, I'm not," said Jack, and his voice had gone very quiet. "I do understand. Which is why you should have told me."

Ianto turned wide eyes on Jack. "Told you? Told you I could control fire with my mind, that I could manipulate it and use it to destroy things, to hurt people?"

"Do you?" asked Jack.

"Do I what?"

"Do you hurt people?"

"I try not to."

"But have you?"

"No! Only myself."

"Good." Ianto glanced up in shock again, but Jack shook his head, his eyes sliding shut. "I didn't mean it that way. I'm glad you haven't hurt anyone because I know what that would do to you."

Ianto turned away and sighed. "I've worked very hard to learn how to control it, Jack. But I won't be used as a weapon. It's wrong. _I'm_ wrong."

Jack sauntered in front of Ianto, raising an eyebrow at the defiant look Ianto held fast against the overwhelming nearness of Jack's personality. "Is that why you didn't tell me, then? Because you thought I'd use you as a weapon?"

"I…I don't know. Maybe." Ianto waved away the ridiculous charge, but was then left having to supply an answer and found himself without words. Now that he had said it out loud, he found it was true. He was well aware of how ruthless Jack could be at times. The silence seemed to echo in the empty cavern.

"Show me."

Ianto let his head fall to his chest. "No."

"Show me what you can do," Jack pressed. "I need to know."

"Know what?" Ianto knew the answer, but asked anyway.

"I need to know if you are a danger to team."

Ianto glanced sideways and laughed bitterly. "Of course I'm a danger, Jack. I can burn a warehouse to the ground by thinking about it."

"Can you really control it?"

"Yes."

"Then show me."

"I'm not a dog and pony show either!" Ianto was tempted to turn and shove Jack away again, but found that exhaustion was starting to take its toll once more. "I don't enjoy being like this, Jack. It's terrifying. I just want to be normal."

"Is that why you didn't tell me then?"

"Wait—what?"

"Is that why you didn't tell me?" Jack repeated, enunciating his words carefully. "Because you're afraid of it?"

Ianto stared at Jack as if he had grown a second head. "Of course I'm afraid of it! I didn't ask for this, but somehow, it happened. So I'm dealing with it the best that I can, on my own." He waved his hand over the cavern, killing all the flames but one near the door. Then he strode away. "I'm not talking about this anymore."

"Ianto!" Jack called, reaching out to grab his hand. "What are you afraid of?"

"What do you think, Jack?" Ianto hissed, shaking off Jack's hold.

"I think you're afraid of yourself," Jack said softly. "Of what you can do, of what others will think. But more than that you're afraid of…" He trailed off, studying Ianto's face carefully. "You're afraid of being used. Not only as a weapon, but in other ways as well. You're afraid of the responsibility." Ianto felt his eyes widen in spite of his attempt to not react to anything Jack might say. Jack did not smile, but nodded his head. "You're afraid that this will become an obligation for you, a tool for Torchwood to use as not only as a weapon, but as protection as well. And you don't want to fail, because that terrifies you more than anything."

"Fuck you, Jack," Ianto snapped, but heard the lack of real emotion. Jack was exactly right: Ianto did not want to be responsible for the team's safety because of his power. He could deal with being the one who took care of them at the Hub and had their backs as one of the team in the field. He could not handle it if he tried to protect them—or was ordered to—with his powers and failed. Which was exactly why he kept it to himself, feeling guilty for not only keeping another secret but ashamed for not using his power to help.

As if he were some sort of superhero; he wasn't and never would be.

A bitter laugh escaped his lips and he let his head fall to his chest again. "I'm not a weapon and I'm not a shield," he murmured. "I don't know what I am, but I won't be used to hurt others and I can't be used to save them either. I'm not a hero, Jack."

Jack grabbed him by the shoulders. "I would never ask you to hurt someone!" he insisted, practically shaking Ianto and forcing him to meet Jack's eyes. "And I won't ask you to use it to protect us. It's not like you can stop a rampaging Weevil with it."

Ianto glanced upward and shrugged. "If I set it on fire, I suppose." He took a deep breath and met Jack's eyes. "But I won't do that, Jack. Not even to a Weevil."

Jack moved as if he wanted to embrace Ianto, but stopped when Ianto stiffened. Instead, Jack's hand came up to Ianto's shoulder. "I wouldn't ask you to do that to any living creature," he said softly. "I know what it would do to you on the inside."

"Then you know why I can't tell the others," Ianto whispered. "They'll expect me to do something, to stop things, to save them. I can't do that, Jack. I won't do that—"

This time Jack did pull Ianto into an embrace, and in order to stop the slightly hysterical feelings bubbling within him, Ianto let himself accept Jack's arms, breathing quickly, but refusing to break down.

"I won't say anything," Jack whispered, and Ianto was surprised to hear Jack's voice crack. He pulled back to gaze into Jack's eyes with a questioning look, and Jack chuckled before he cleared his throat. "Sorry. It's just that…I wish you had told me. I wish you felt like you _could_ tell me."

"Jack." Ianto literally put a hand on Jack's chest to stop him from hunching over with guilt. "I didn't keep it from you to hurt you."

"I know," Jack said, nodding with a sad smile. "But I still wish you could talk to me, that's all."

Ianto studied him for several moments before offering a small shrug. "We're not like that, Jack. We don't tell each other things very often, do we?" He knew he was treading in shallow water, his feelings about the confrontation with Gwen earlier clouding his thoughts at that moment, minimizing his relationship with Jack to avoid being hurt. Yet it was true: he and Jack had a more regular relationship now, and at times it even felt like they were growing closer, but they weren't close enough to share real feelings, deep feelings. _Secrets_. Hell, Ianto still knew very little about Jack's time away with the Doctor. Ianto had feared losing Jack if his secret were discovered, but it occurred to him now that maybe he had kept his secret because Jack kept his own. Why share his life when Jack didn't share his? The realization filled him with shame, but also bitterness. Why couldn't they be more normal? Why were things always so complicated?

Jack seemed to have gone through a similar thought process. He closed his eyes, hands in his pockets as he hung his head. "I know," he said softly. "My fault again. And I'm guessing that's another reason why you didn't tell me, isn't it?" He glanced up with a crooked grin.

"Not consciously," Ianto admitted. "But I suppose knowing how much you hold back makes me less enthusiastic about saying anything." He took a deep breath. "It's who we are, Jack. You're a time traveling immortal with over a century of secrets. I'm a fire starting mortal with my own fair share of emotional baggage. It's a wonder we've made it this far."

Jack frowned at that last. "I'd like to think we're more than that, together."

And there it was, the one thing Ianto had wanted to avoid more than anything: the subject of them. "More than what, Jack? We sleep together, we don't talk about our feelings afterwards. It is what it is. And now that you know about this, I have no idea what's going to happen. Personally or professionally." He didn't really think Jack would turn him in, or lock him up, or even stop sleeping with him, but it would certainly change something, wouldn't it?

Jack was still frowning. "Can we sit down somewhere? Maybe start a little campfire, conjure up some marshmellows?" He raised his eyebrows hopefully, and Ianto rolled his eyes. He glanced around, found a suitable spot, and sat down. Raising his hand, a small series of flames burst into being, hovering above the stone of the cavern floor. Jack sat next to him, gazing into the fire.

And they talked.

* * *

Author's Note  
Utterly self-indulgent, but hopefully entertaining. I've been sitting on this for ages, but I think it was borne of reading one too many "Ianto-has-a-big-secret" stories and then plotting with Taamar to write my own. It's five chapters short and complete, so do enjoy!


	2. Chapter Two: Conversations

Chapter Two - Conversations

"It's really amazing," Jack said softly, gazing into the fire before him in wonder. "I've never seen anything like it, and I've seen a lot."

Ianto pulled his knees up to his chest, concentrated, then began playing with the fire: bringing one flame up higher, twirling it about, sending it off into the cave with a flick of his hand. Jack was entranced, and Ianto sighed as he let the fire return to normal.

"So you don't know what it is?" he asked. "Or how to stop it?"

Jack turned so quickly Ianto thought he might get whiplash. "Stop it? Why would you want to do that?"

Ianto raised an eyebrow. "I don't particularly enjoy feeling like a human torch who could blow at any moment."

"Blow? You said you could control it."

"I can," Ianto replied, shaking his head. "But that doesn't mean something won't go wrong someday. Or that it won't evolve into something I _can't_ control."

"So you want to fix it?" asked Jack, still gazing thoughtfully at Ianto. He nodded.

"Of course I do. Don't you?" Ianto was not referring to his condition alone. Jack sighed and looked away.

"Touché," he acknowledged. "That's why I went away, to find out what happened to me. To fix it. But I couldn't. You…" He trailed off. "You have no idea how it happened?"

"Not really," Ianto replied.

"Not really?" Jack repeated. "When did it start?"

Ianto rested his chin on his knees. "During my suspension," he replied. "A few days after Lisa died." He heard rather than saw Jack's sharp intake of breath next to him.

"You mean, the fire at your flat…that was you?"

Ianto nodded miserably as he recalled the night he'd lost most of his tiny flat. "It was the first time it manifested. I had no idea what was happening and panicked. That's how I got those burns you saw at the hospital." He laughed bitterly. "I tried to ignore it at first, but after a few more incidents, I realized I needed to learn how to control it, even if I didn't understand it."

"What did you do?" Jack asked, and Ianto heard genuine interest and support in the other man's voice. It encouraged him to continue, even though a quiet voice inside was reminding him that he and Jack didn't talk about things—that Jack kept all his secrets close, and that revealing his own might only make things worse, not better, because Ianto still wasn't sure what Jack would do now that he knew. Ianto shook it off and continued, though he stayed brief, unwilling to go into detail.

"Google was no help," he deadpanned, and Jack laughed. "Nor were the archives, surprisingly enough. I had no one to turn to, not really—"

"You could have talked to us," Jack interrupted. "You could have told me."

"Jack," Ianto sighed, trying not to roll his eyes. "I really couldn't, you know. I was on suspension and even when I came back, I still felt estranged from the rest of the team. And no offense, but after you threatened to execute me, confessing another secret was the last thing I wanted to do."

"Even after we started…" Jack asked, leaving the rest unsaid.

"Even after we started shagging, yes," said Ianto. "In case you didn't notice at the time, I did enjoy myself and didn't want it to end."

"I wouldn't have—" Jack shook his head. "You could have told me, but I understand why you didn't. What did you do then?"

"It was unpredictable, but clearly tied to my emotions, so I thought stress management techniques might help—breathing, meditation, yoga. Sex."

Jack grinned. "Ah. That's what those long nights were really about."

"It helped, in its own way," Ianto said softly, staring in the fire. "But there were still bad days, so I started looking into all those things people tell you to do for things like tension and anxiety and migraines, only I was trying not to set fire to my bed. Before you left I tried yoga, which eventually lead me to Tai Chi. That was where I met a teacher named Kasana Timota, who helped me gain conscious control. She's the only one who knows."

He felt Jack stiffen beside him and braced himself for the inevitable explosion. "You told someone outside Torchwood?" he asked, and to Ianto's surprise there was more hurt than anger in Jack's voice. Ianto frowned into the fire.

"I had to," he said. "I trusted her almost immediately, and she seemed like the only one who could help me. We created a series of position and control exercises while you were gone."

Again Jack glanced at him in surprise. "While I was gone? You waited that long?"

"I told you, I tried to ignore it at first," Ianto whispered. "It only flared when things got difficult—like after the cannibals."

Jack nodded in understanding. "You're the one who started the fire as we were leaving. With your powers."

"Yes," Ianto replied, shutting his eyes. "I didn't mean to, but I was suddenly so irrationally angry that it just sort of…happened."

"I wondered why you were so freaked out," Jack murmured. "I figured it was your injuries."

"I was scared. I knew it was me, and it was obvious I didn't have any control over it. Mostly I was so angry that it was easy to let it all come out and burn the place to the ground."

"And the weevil fighting warehouse?" Jack surmised. "Was that you?"

Ianto nodded miserably. "Yes. I was still upset over so many things, including finding you with John Ellis and that damn fiasco with Owen, that I thought maybe it would help to let it all go and deliberately destroy something."

"Did it?" asked Jack, and Ianto laughed bitterly.

"Not really, I almost got myself killed. And then you left a few weeks later, and I was so angry, Jack, but I had nothing to burn down. God, the team actually sent me home, I was such a wreck. Owen was convinced it was drugs. I needed help. I was lucky to find Kasana. She probably saved my life."

Ianto chanced a look sideways and was once again surprised to see a look of sadness on Jack's face. "I'm sorry," Jack whispered. "I know I've said it a hundred times, but I'm sorry I wasn't there for you."

"I told you that I understood why you left," said Ianto. "Now you know how much. I'd do anything to get rid of this. You did what you had to do."

"It didn't matter," said Jack. "There's no changing what happened to me, and in some ways leaving only made things worse. So did your teacher help you control your power like this?" Jack asked, gazing around the dark cavern. Ianto took a deep breath.

"In a way," he responded. "She had obviously never encountered it before, but she sensed it was anger that was causing so many problems. So she guided me through my anger, allowed me to feel it, but in a way where it didn't control me. We worked out exercises and hand positions and meditations. It was almost like creating our own secret system of magic."

"It is magical," Jack murmured. Ianto didn't reply, but continued when Jack was silent.

"I learned how to focus, channel, and release it with control. Because I knew I couldn't lose control, or people could get hurt, including myself."

Jack was silent for a long time. He ran a hand over the flames Ianto had created, absently shaking his head as if still amazed. Ianto almost opened his mouth to apologize again, but found he couldn't. Even though he was sorry that he might have hurt Jack in not telling him, he was still holding onto a small part of his anger with the man—for leaving at such a bad time in Ianto's life, for discovering his secret unexpectedly, for so many other, smaller things that suddenly felt overwhelming, including the confrontation with Gwen. Fortunately—or not—Jack beat him to speaking.

"What happened tonight?" he asked, still playing idly with the fire. "At the warehouse? Were you angry?"

Ianto replied quickly; that was an easy question to answer. "I was. What those men were doing was despicable, so it was easy to channel all my anger and disgust into burning everything down to the ground. The world is better off now, and so is that poor, tortured creature."

Jack nodded; Ianto was fairly sure Jack agreed with everything he'd said. He knew Jack had been held captive at some point while he was gone, and that it was one reason Jack had been gone for so many months, though Ianto knew little else. It was quite likely Jack sympathized with the creature more than any of them. Ianto was about to ask when Jack stopped him with another question of his own.

"What about just now?" he asked, turning to meet Ianto's eyes. "Were you channeling your anger for a purpose or releasing it?"

Ianto held his gaze for several seconds before glancing away. "I'm really not sure."

"You're angry with me," Jack offered. When Ianto simply inclined his head, Jack continued, his voice somewhat distant. "Because you felt like you couldn't tell me. Because I came back and found you." Ianto nodded, surprised that Jack was perceptive enough to pick up on his feelings. He waited for Jack to continue, to see if the other man sensed more.

"You're angry about what happened in the warehouse, and about what happened in the Hub with Gwen, like the others."

Abruptly Ianto didn't want to go there, go anywhere near there with Jack. He was raw enough from the harrowing experience at the warehouse, from Jack discovering his secret, and his own conflicted feelings over Jack's words to Gwen. They didn't talk about things like feelings, but that didn't mean Ianto wanted to start right then. It was enough to have revealed so much about his strange power. He stood up, looking down at Jack with what he hoped was a neutral expression.

"It was a hard day for everyone, Jack," he said. "I should go home."

Jack's hand shot up and grabbed him around the wrist. "Please stay," he said.

Ianto winced, and not because of Jack's words. He forgot what the ropes had done to his arms. Though it was not nearly as bad as the last time he had been involuntarily tied up, it still stung, and he snatched his arm away without thinking. Jack jumped up and reached for both of his hands.

"I thought you said it didn't hurt you," he said, examining Ianto's palms and finding nothing. Sometimes Ianto couldn't help but be amazed at how oblivious Jack was as his fingers wrapped around Ianto's wrists once more. It sent a twinge of both pain and anger through him.

"It wasn't the fire," he snapped. He stepped back, sent the fire they'd been sitting by rushing toward the ceiling and back down, then showed Jack his upturned palms. "It doesn't hurt unless I stay too close, for too long, and even then, I can tolerate quite a bit the more I use it."

Jack looked confused, and Ianto felt his irritation dissipate, knowing that sometimes Jack could barely see past the end of his nose. He put out the fire, turned on his heel, and walked away into the dark. "It was the ropes, Jack."

He felt Jack catch up to him, reach out and barely refrain from touching him again. "Ropes?"

"In the warehouse," Ianto said wearily, having lost any energy for the fight. "When I almost got shot."

"Stop." This time Jack did reach out and touched his shoulder. "Ianto, please stop."

Ianto turned with a sigh. "It's nothing, Jack. It'll be fine by the morning."

Jack took his hands gently this time, pushing the sleeves up. "How about a little light, firefly?"

Ianto willed a flicker of a flame into being between them, letting it hover and ignoring Jack's nickname. Jack was once again entranced by it before he shook his head and bent over Ianto's hands, examining his wrists.

"You dislocated your thumb, didn't you?" he asked, glancing up with a frown. Ianto shrugged in reply.

"I had to get free of the ropes. It popped back into place. It's fine."

"It's not fine," said Jack. "I bet it hurts like hell."

"It's not really bothering me," Ianto replied, leaving unsaid everything else that was. Jack picked up on the unspoken meaning.

"Then let me ice it for you, wrap your wrists, and we can talk some more."

When Ianto hesitated, Jack stepped closer, raising a hand to Ianto's face. "I want to understand this and fix what's come between us. Please let me try."

Jack had said 'please' more times in the last hour than he had for the past three months, and it was that more than anything that convinced Ianto to nod and lead them from the cave. He let the finger of flame drift above them and light the way. When Jack took his hand and gently squeezed, Ianto squeezed back, and they walked back to the Hub that way, their fingers interlaced with comfortable silence.

* * *

Author's Note:

Thank you for such a lovely response to the first chapter! The next one is a bit longer than this one and sees Jack and Ianto trying to figure out the fire power, with several unexpected consequences.


	3. Chapter Three: Revelations

Chapter Three - Revelations

When they reached the main part of the Hub, Ianto was surprised to see that it was empty; apparently both Tosh and Owen had left not long after Gwen. Tempted to make coffee, he half wanted to hide behind the veneer of butler-like efficiency, but Jack guided him toward the medical bay. He stood tiredly while Jack moved around, gathering supplies—wipes, cream, gauze, ice—until Jack motioned him to sit on the metal table. The silence that had been comfortable as they walked hand in hand through the corridors began to feel awkward.

"I was gone for over a year in my timeline." Jack started speaking out of the blue, his choice of topic surprising Ianto even more. He knew Jack had been gone far longer than it had been for them, and that it had been a difficult time. Something had happened to Jack, something that had brought him back to Earth a different man, but he had not spoken about it much, only occasionally dropping hints in passing comments. Now it seemed he was ready to talk, although he was currently waiting for Ianto to respond.

"Time machines have been known to have that effect," Ianto offered. Jack smiled, as if given permission to continue, and began to talk as he rolled up Ianto's sleeves to the elbows.

"I wasn't gone for that long by choice," he said. "I was taken prisoner with the Doctor and his companion, a woman named Martha Jones. Although she escaped, the Doctor and I were held on the Master's ship for a year until we were released."

Ianto held back his instinctive reaction, sensing it could derail Jack's story. It seemed his time away had been far more difficult than any of them had imagined. Held prisoner for an entire year? Ianto couldn't imagine what it had been like.

"I'm sorry," he offered, but Jack waved him away as he began to clean Ianto's wrists, gently dabbing them with water and patting them dry.

"Oh, there's more," he said, the bitterness in his voice obvious and strong. "We were tortured, physically and mentally. And let me tell you, when you can't die, torture takes on an entirely new definition."

Ianto froze, suddenly unsure if he wanted to know what had happened to Jack. As if he had sensed Ianto's reaction, Jack glanced up and met his eyes. "I don't have to talk about this if you don't want me to," he whispered.

"Yes, you do," said Ianto. This was something that Jack had kept hidden for weeks since his return, and it was obvious that something had happened earlier which triggered the need for him to release it. "And I can listen."

Jack pulled in a deep breath that almost sounded like it hitched on a cross between a sob and a laugh before he continued. "This man, the Master, he was a Time Lord. We met him at the end of the universe, quite literally, and he stole the Doctor's ship to come back in time." Another pause, another breath. "He came to Earth, where he set himself up as Harold Saxon, the man who became Prime Minister."

"What?" asked Ianto, stunned at the sudden twist. "You can't be serious. I know Harold Saxon was dangerous and insane—he wouldn't leave us alone after you left—but are you actually saying the Prime Minister of Great Britain was an alien?"

"He was," said Jack, looking down again. "A very bad alien. He became Prime Minister, murdered the American president, and held us prisoner on the Valiant for a year."

"No," said Ianto, shaking his head. "We would have known. We looked for you, Jack. When you turned up on the news, we tried to contact you, but we were sent to Nepal before we could track you down."

"The Master—Harold Saxon—sent you to get you out of the way." Jack was speaking very matter of fact, but Ianto sensed a precarious hold in him, as if he could fly apart at any moment.

"It was the proverbial wild goose chase," said Ianto. "There was nothing there, we were held up coming home, and by the time we made it back to the UK, everything was over. Then you showed up a few days later."

Jack nodded. "The difference is that in my timeline, the one I lived for a year, you were all captured or killed after that mission."

"How is that possible?" asked Ianto. "How could it happen for you and not for us? Why don't we remember it? Why are we still alive?"

"It was all due to a paradox," Jack answered, gently stroking Ianto's sore thumb. "When we ended the paradox, time reversed itself. None of it actually happened, except to those of us who were on board the Valiant at the time."

"You remember it because you were right at the center of it, like with Abaddon and the Rift," Ianto supplied, and Jack nodded, then fell silent. Ianto asked the question that he had been thinking since Jack had started talking.

"Why are you telling me this, Jack?"

Jack took a deep breath and sighed before meeting Ianto's eyes. "A lot of reasons, if you'll bear with me. I've wanted to tell you for a while, but I didn't know how. I went with the Doctor to find answers—to find out what happened to me, why I can't die, and to see if he could fix me. Because you're right, I don't want this. I never did. It's a nightmare being unable to die, yet watching everyone die around me. I lose everyone, and it's unbearable, it's—"

"Jack," Ianto said as Jack began to ramble. "It's all right. I understand why you left." He couldn't help but shake his head and laugh. "Really, I understand."

Jack gazed at him with something akin to wonder. "I know you do. But there's more. It was all a mistake. A woman named Rose Tyler used the power of the time vortex to bring me back to life, but she couldn't control it, and it brought me back forever. _Forever_. I'm a fixed point in space and time and I won't ever die. I'm wrong."

"Don't say that!" Ianto couldn't help but snap, somewhat surprised at Jack's sudden turn toward maudlin self-pity. "You're not a mistake, and you're not wrong. You're amazing, Jack. There's no one like you, and I wouldn't want you any other way."

"And I wouldn't want you any other way," Jack said, grabbing Ianto's arms and holding him tight. "Do you understand what I'm trying to say? That you could have told me, because I would have accepted you exactly as you are? So you have some sort of firepower. I always thought you were hot." Ianto rolled his eyes. "You're not wrong either, Ianto."

Ianto quirked an eyebrow at Jack, tempted to laugh but holding back. He thought Jack was holding it in as well, and they finally grinned at one another. "We're a couple of misfits, aren't we?" Ianto asked, and Jack nodded.

"At least we have each other," said Jack, abruptly back to serious. "At least, I hope so. I'm not going to use you, and I'm not going to leave you. I'm sorry you doubted me." He truly looked upset, as if any of it were his fault.

"Jack…" Ianto trailed off with a sigh, once again feeling ashamed but for different reasons now. "I'm sorry. Maybe I should have trusted you more, but trusting _anyone_ is hard with something like this."

"I know," said Jack, brushing a hand across Ianto's face. "Believe me, I know. Why do you think I kept my secret for so long? I've been called so many names, tortured and rejected and abandoned so many times I couldn't bear for it to happen again."

"I don't want the team to know," said Ianto.

"I understand," said Jack. "Really, I do. But you might find that you'll want to tell them. It's so much easier. Trust me, I learned the hard way."

They were silent for a long moment, as Jack wrapped some light gauze around the rope burns on Ianto's wrists.

"So how does it work, exactly?" he asked curiously. "You seem to direct it with your hands."

Ianto flexed his fingers a few times and called up a finger of blue flame between them. "It's hard to explain. I can feel energy in my hands now, all the time. If I concentrate, I can gather it, focus it. And when it's focused enough, I release it, and fire is the result." He shrugged and put out the flame. "I'm sure there's much more to it, but I don't understand how it works, only that it does."

Jack was nodding thoughtfully. "And you feel it as heat? The energy?"

"Sort of," Ianto replied. "Warmth, tingling, sometimes even a bit itchy. Why?"

"Heat is kinetic energy, molecules speeding up and releasing energy as they move."

"Basic physics," said Ianto. Jack stepped back and put a hand to his chin.

"Have you ever tried slowing down the molecules?"

Ianto stared at him. "What? You mean…try to freeze something?" Jack nodded, and Ianto shook his head as he jumped off the table. "No, I haven't. I don't think it would work. The energy is already there, all around me, I can sense it. I can gather it and manipulate it, sort of like…sort of like being surrounded by water. I can splash it, but I can't make steam or turn it into ice. I use the energy as it is, I don't think I can change its properties."

Jack nodded as if he understood, but as Ianto barely understood it himself, he seriously doubted it. Jack continued as if he did. "All right then, so what kind of energy are we talking about?"

"I've no idea," said Ianto. "Does it matter?"

"Have you run any tests?" asked Jack. Ianto whirled on him.

"No! And I won't be experimented on, I'm not a—"

Jack took three steps and grabbed him by the shoulders. "I'm not suggesting it, I'm sorry! I didn't mean it to come out that way." He took a deep breath. "I'm curious, that's all."

"You have a theory," said Ianto, recognizing the tone to Jack's voice. Jack hesitated, which told Ianto he was correct.

"Not really, but there are lots of types of energy, after all. We're living on a Rift in time and space, and the Rift has a unique energy signature." Jack cocked an eyebrow and offered Ianto one of his trademark leers. "So can I scan you?"

"What are you hoping to find?" When Jack frowned, Ianto shook his head. "I know you, Jack. You have an idea and you want it to play out. Whether it's so you have an answer or for some other reason, I don't know." He paused and let his shoulders droop. "And I'm not sure I want to. Does it matter?"

"Did it ever occur to you that if we knew what it was, we could fix it?" asked Jack, hands tucked under his arms.

"Of course it occurred to me," said Ianto, sinking wearily onto Owen's chair and absently spinning around. Jack raised an eyebrow, and he stopped, letting his elbows fall to his knees. "I looked into it a bit when you were gone. I was usually the last one here, so I tried out a few of Owen's medical toys. I didn't find anything."

"Did you know what you were looking for?" asked Jack, and Ianto glanced up, letting Jack see his skepticism.

"Of course not. But I know enough to recognize an anomaly." He leaned back and scrubbed a hand over his face. "It's definitely not a virus or anything like that, and if it was alien tech, I've not found it or any reference to it in the archives. Believe me, I've looked. It's just something that happened after Lisa died. Trauma, maybe."

Jack was watching him closely, obviously thinking. "Come here," he said, patting the metal bed. "Let me check some readings."

"Jack…"

"Please? I have some ideas. It might help."

Ianto sighed and walked over to the bed. What did he have to lose? If nothing turned up, he was right back where he started. If Jack found anything worth knowing, perhaps there was something they would be able to do about it.

Yet in spite of his words earlier, Ianto wondered if he could give up his unique ability now. He rarely used it and half the time it still scared the hell out of him, but he'd worked hard to gain control of it, and when he did bring fire into the world, it was a thing of beauty. He sometimes considered using it for good, but the responsibility of it overwhelmed him.

He wondered if Jack felt the same way. He was so old, had seen so much, and would live forever. Yet if he were given the chance to die a mortal death, would Jack take it? Or was it still too soon?

Jack picked up one of Owen's handheld scanners. He appeared to be recalibrating it, then ran it up and down Ianto's body, continuing to adjust it, humming now and then, grinning and offering a dirty wink as he ran it over Ianto's hips. Ianto graced him with an eye roll.

"Well?" he asked when Jack stepped back. "Find what you were looking for?"

Jack was staring at the scanner, the look on his face unreadable. "Jack?"

The other man glanced up and tried to cover a guilty look with a grin that looked more like a grimace. "I always find what I'm looking for when I'm looking at you."

Ianto groaned. "That was terrible, even for you. What does it say?"

Jack sighed and motioned him to sit up and move over. He sat next to him on the bed, holding out the scanner to explain.

"You have extremely high levels of artron energy," he said, then watched Ianto closely for a reaction. While Ianto was familiar with the concept, he wasn't sure what it meant and motioned for Jack to continue.

"Artron energy comes from the Time Vortex," Jack said, and paused again, waiting for a response.

"I've never been through the Time Vortex," said Ianto. Jack nodded.

"But I have."

"So you're contagious then?" Ianto replied, hoping Jack caught the teasing tone to his words. Jack smiled in response, but it did not reach his eyes, and he did not offer a clever reply.

"Like you said, I work on a rift in space and time," Ianto pointed out. "Couldn't that be it?"

"Part of it, maybe. But I'm willing to bet these levels are much higher than any of the others."

"And you think that has something to do with my ability?" asked Ianto. He didn't want to call it a superpower, not really, even though he sometimes did in his head, on days when he was feeling particularly flippant about it.

Jack took a deep breath. "We know a small amount of artron energy leaks through the Rift, but I doubt it's enough to affect your readings like this. My guess is that somehow you're able to sense it and use it now, and that's what's affecting your levels."

"No, that doesn't sound right," said Ianto almost immediately. "Because then I'd be limited to the range of the Rift, and I could still use it in the Beacons, even if it was uncontrolled."

Jack frowned at the scanner. "That's right. Was it harder to tap?"

Ianto thought back and shook his head. "I don't remember. I was very angry, maybe I stored it up and brought it with me?"

"I suppose it's possible," said Jack. "Have you tried to use it outside Cardiff at any other point?"

"No, I try not to use it much at all," said Ianto. Which was true. He had learned how to control it, and since Jack had returned, he had used it less than a dozen times.

"So how did I suddenly develop this ability to use artron energy as my own personal heating system?" asked Ianto.

"That I don't know," Jack replied with a helpless shrug. "You said it happened while you were gone…" He trailed off, uncertain how to address it.

"When I was on suspension. Only a few days, actually. It was not long after you'd come by. I thought for sure you were going to Retcon me." He sighed. "I was furious that you didn't."

"So I'd been there and you were angry." Jack laughed through his nose. "Sort of like tonight."

Ianto shook his head. "No, not like tonight. Tonight I controlled it. The first time it burst out and set fire to my flat, and it was terrifying."

Jack wrapped an arm around him. "I can only imagine. I wish you had said something then. We could have helped you."

"You would have put a bullet in my brain," said Ianto matter-of-factly. "Given what had just happened, is it any surprise I didn't tell you?"

"I suppose not," said Jack, sounding sad again. They sat in silence for a moment.

"Do you think something triggered it?" asked Ianto. "Something…I don't know…something at Canary Wharf, or something that happened that day at the Hub…" He didn't mention what day, since he knew Jack was perfectly aware of it.

"I don't know," said Jack, but Ianto sensed the slightest bet of hesitation, as if he were being evasive and suspected something he wasn't ready to share. Ianto considered pushing it, but Jack was too much like him, keeping his thoughts to himself more often than not. There would be other chances for Ianto to ask about it. "Do you know anything about artron energy?"

"Only what you're about to tell me," Ianto replied dryly.

"Time Lords are born with it," Jack mused, staring off into space. "It powers their ships. When someone travels through the Vortex, it sort of clings to them. It's part of what brings me back, the energy of the Time Vortex. And it's said to increase immune systems."

Ianto cocked his head and thought about it. "I haven't been sick in a while. Guess that's a nice side effect. I'm not going to grow a third eye or anything, am I?"

"No, I don't think so," Jack laughed. "But…well, I may not understand why you can sense it and use it, but I'm still curious…do you trust me to try something?"

"Depends on how kinky it is," replied Ianto, surprised at the unexpected return of his sense of humor. To his even bigger surprise, Jack did not run with the innuendo.

"It's not. It's just another idea. You said you have to focus it first. I assume you're directing the energy away from you when you release it?"

Ianto nodded, wondering where Jack was going with it.

"So you focus the energy and direct it away from you, where it manifests as flame. Have you ever tried to make it do something else?"

Ianto looked startled. "You already asked me if I could freeze something," he started, and Jack shook his head.

"And you told me it doesn't work like that—you sense it, gather it, and use it. Like gathering water and splashing it at someone. You can't change its basic properties. But instead of splashing someone, could you do something else? Create a big wave or blow bubbles or something?

"Are we talking about artron energy or swimming?" Ianto asked, his lips quirking. Jack leaned forward for a long, leisurely kiss.

"Answer my question and maybe I'll take you to the beach next weekend," he murmured, and Ianto sighed in mock resignation.

"So you're wondering if I can use the energy to do something else besides make fire?" he asked.

"It's a thought," said Jack, nodding. "Could be cool."

"Right, I could make a rabbit pop out of a top hat and go on tour," Ianto replied dryly. This time Jack laughed out loud.

"That wasn't quite what I was thinking," he said. "It's still pure energy, and that would involve turning energy into matter. This isn't Star Trek."

"Just Torchwood," said Ianto. "Where some people can't die, others throw fire, and an extinct pteranodon circles the rift in time and space we try to protect."

"Hey, that sounds like a great idea for the BBC," said Jack. "But on a more serious note, maybe you could learn to release it as something else besides a flame—a pulse of energy instead of a roaring fire, or even some sort of energetic shield."

"A force field?" asked Ianto, letting his skepticism flow freely as he tried to wrap his mind around the possibilities. "So now we're talking Star Wars?"

Jack shrugged. "What can I say? I get a kick out of old sci-fi."

"Because we're living it," Ianto muttered, and Jack snorted.

"Okay, one more question. What if you directed it inward? Pulled it in closer instead of pushing it away. Have you ever tried that?"

Ianto glanced up sharply. "And set myself on fire?" he asked, voice rising. Jack shook his head and laid a hand on Ianto's knee.

"No, no, not that. Gathering it to you and holding onto it, then releasing it with a different intent, inside you."

Ianto shook his head. "I really don't fancy blowing myself up."

"I don't think that would happen, not if you did it slowly," said Jack. "I think it would work differently if you pulled it toward you instead of forcing it away. Offensive versus defensive. Could you try?"

Ianto gave him yet another skeptical look, and Jack leaned over to kiss him once more. "For me?"

Closing his eyes, Ianto gathered the minute fibers of energy he felt flowing around him when he concentrated on his unique ability. He had grown quick at it, and normally he would then raise a hand to direct it outward. This time he tried to pull it closer to him. It was a struggle, and it felt odd: hot and prickly and almost painful, but inside him, not only his hands. Apparently he could bring it close rather than letting it burst forth, although he wasn't sure why he would; it was a rather uncomfortable feeling, as if bugs were running through his veins. He nodded and let it go, dissipating the energy around him as carefully as he could. There was no burst of flame, but a cloud of warmth.

Jack nodded. "Good. This might actually work." He jumped down from the bed and moved toward a drawer, where he pulled out a scalpel.

"What might work?" asked Ianto, eyeing the tool warily. This time he really had no idea what Jack was thinking.

"Artron energy is healing energy," Jack said softly, taking his hand and holding the scalpel above it. "Time Lords use it to regenerate when they die."

"I can't regenerate, Jack!" Ianto exclaimed, instinctively snatching his hand away. "I'm not a Time Lord, for god's sake. I'm not the Doctor."

"I know that," Jack soothed. "I'm not trying to make you into the Doctor, believe me. He…" Jack took a deep breath. "He left me, Ianto. He knew what had happened to me, and he left me behind. I waited over a hundred years for him, and when he finally landed here in Cardiff, he ran away again. He said it hurt to look at me, because I'm wrong."

Ianto took both of Jack's hands and squeezed tight. "You're not wrong," he said, trying to draw Jack back to him. "You're here with us, and he doesn't know what he's missing. He's the one that's wrong."

"Thanks," said Jack, taking a deep breath. "That's why I came back. I belong here. We parted well enough, but I'm done with Time Lords. I came back to be with you. Do you trust me?" He held up the scalpel once more. Ianto held his eyes, trying to guess at Jack's intention, and saw only honesty, concern, and something akin to hope.

"Yes, though sometimes against my better judgment," Ianto murmured. He did not flinch as Jack drew the fine edge along his palm, a thin line of blood appearing from the wound. It was not deep and only stung a little, but Ianto stared at it, wondering what to do.

"Concentrate," said Jack softly. "Close your eyes, pull all that energy back into you like you did before." Ianto did as he was told, then nodded. "Good, now direct it toward the cut on your hand and release it. Let it in, let it cleanse, let it heal the cut."

Somehow, Ianto understood. He was using the energy to stitch the skin back together, to fix each cell one by one. It was a bit like one of Owen's alien medical devices, only this time it was Ianto himself doing the work. He concentrated, unsure if it was working, directing his intent the best that he could. It was harder than creating fire, because the fire appeared naturally; this was carefully directing the energy to do something very different, though he suspected it was equally as natural. His palm felt hot, and then itchy, and then only sore. He started to sweat just before he felt all of his stamina and energy leave him in a sudden, vulnerable rush. He might have tumbled forward if Jack hadn't caught him.

Opening his eyes, Ianto blinked a few times, unexpected fatigue making his vision slightly blurry. He was also freezing cold and started shivering almost immediately. Jack threw a blanket around him, then took up his hand, tracing his fingers across Ianto's palm.

"You did it," he murmured, then glanced up with bright eyes. "You healed it."

Ianto glanced at his hand, a tiny white line the only evidence of Jack's cut to his palm. It was breathtaking and frightening at the same time, and Ianto definitely felt faint. Jack guided him to lie down and ran the scanner over him once more.

"Everything seems fine," he said. "Although you're clearly drained."

Ianto nodded in agreement, his eyes closed. He had been tired before; now he was exhausted. It was as if pulling so much energy into him and then directing it toward healing the cut had taken everything out of him, sort of like running too far in one burst or lifting too many weights. He thought he could sleep for days.

"Come on, let's get you home," Jack said softly, rubbing his shoulder. "Can you stand?"

"I don't really want to," Ianto muttered, cracking one eye open. "And I certainly don't want to walk to the car, drive home, and get myself up three flights of stairs to my flat. I'll pass out on the landing for sure."

"My room, then?" asked Jack with a smile.

"If you don't mind," said Ianto. He sat up with a groan and swung his legs over the side of the table. When he tried to stand, his legs turned to jelly and Jack caught him around the waist to help him back into the main part of the Hub. They walked slowly and silently toward Jack's office, where Jack went down to his bunker first and helped Ianto down the ladder.

Ianto shucked off his waistcoat, uncaring of where it landed. He started unbuttoning his shirt, but his arms felt like they weighed ten stone each. Jack helped him undress, gently taking care of him in a way Ianto had not experienced before.

"I'm not up for anything other than a good night kiss, you know," he murmured as he sat on the edge of the bed in his boxers, staring at nothing. He was physically worn out, but he was also mentally exhausted. Between the tragic situation with the space whale, the cutting confrontation between Jack and Gwen, the revelation of his secret, and the possibility of his ability being much more than pretty lights, Ianto found he was emotionally spent.

"I realize that," Jack said, sitting down beside him and laying a hand on Ianto's knee. "You were already tired, and apparently using artron energy to heal is draining. Ironic."

Ianto turned to raise his eyes to Jack's. "What just happened?" he asked. "What does this mean?"

Jack sighed and pulled him close, moving them back until they were leaning against the wall. "Well, for one, I think it means Owen won't be quite as busy patching you up around here." When Ianto remained silent, he apologized. "Sorry, I don't mean to be flippant…but if you can use this energy to heal your injuries, that can only be a good thing, right?"

"I healed a cut," Ianto said wearily. "And it wiped me out. There's no way to know whether I can heal a gunshot or a Weevil claw without dying from the effort alone."

"You won't," Jack said. "I think it'll get easier once you're used to it, like when you first began trying to control the fire. You probably have to train up to it, like a marathon. But I don't think we need to worry about that right now. It's something to…" He paused. "To work toward. Together."

Ianto let his eyes slip closed. "I'm sorry," he murmured. "I'm sorry you found out like this, that you've been dragged into whatever this is. I understand if you—"

"Stop," said Jack. "Don't apologize. It's me who should be apologizing. For not being there for you, for everything that happened today, for pushing you earlier."

"It's not your fault," Ianto said, his words slurred. He was starting to fall asleep and struggled out of Jack's embrace, literally falling to the pillow with a groan. "It is what it is." The thought seemed to be becoming a mantra for him.

He felt rather than saw Jack get up off the bed, then tuck the covers around him. A warm kiss was placed on his lips. To his surprise, Ianto also felt a brush of fond affection against his mind and instinctively knew it was Jack.

"It's amazing," Jack's voice whispered in his mind. Ianto's eyes flew open.

"What?" he asked, staring at Jack in confusion.

"Artron energy can enhance telepathic ability," Jack murmured out loud. "Welcome to a whole new world, Ianto Jones."

As stunned as he was, Ianto couldn't help but smile as he drifted into sleep, Jack's steady presence murmuring a gentle good night in his confused but elated mind.

* * *

Author's Notes

Remember, I'm not a physicist or a Time Lord. If my science seems dodgy, try Carl Sagan or Isaac Asimov. I'm just a girl writing a story about a boy with fire powers, and the interpersonal dynamics of his relationship now that his secret is out and rapidly changing. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. The next chapter is called 'Confessions' and starts the next morning. Thank you for reading!


	4. Chapter Four: Confessions

Chapter Four - Confessions

Ianto woke to the sound of the shower running in Jack's en suite. Still feeling fatigued, he waited until Jack had finished and come into the bedroom to sit up, not bothering to suppress a yawn.

"What time is it?" he asked, and Jack grinned from where he was pulling on his pants.

"Lunch time," he said, then laughed at the look on Ianto's face. "Got a taste for Thai?"

"I've been asleep for twelve hours?" Ianto exclaimed. "Jack, how could you let me sleep so long? There's work to do! I should—" He stopped and frowned at Jack, who was buttoning a pair of trousers. "If it's noon, how come you're showering now?"

"Tech retrieval," Jack replied. "In a really muddy field. Sorry I woke you."

Ianto stood and stretched, his neck cracking loudly. "No, it's all right. I'm sorry I slept so long. Did you…did you sleep much last night?"

"Actually, I did," said Jack. His trousers were unbuttoned and his shirt open as he sauntered up to Ianto and wrapped his arms around Ianto's waist. "I slept more than usual, to be honest."

Ianto gazed at him, deciding to get right to the point. "I felt you," he said softly. "When I fell asleep, and most of the night. I felt you, and not just your body. What was that?"

"Do you remember what I said right before you fell asleep?" Jack asked, and Ianto shook his head.

"Not really, why?"

Jack took a deep breath. "The energy we were talking about last night, artron energy…it can also enhance telepathic abilities."

Ianto took a moment to think about that, wondering if what he had felt had been real after all or if Jack was putting him on. "I don't have any telepathic abilities," he said.

"Maybe not telepathic, per say," said Jack, "but you're obviously stronger than average when it comes to other psychic abilities. Empathy, intuition, those sorts of things. And you were trained at Torchwood One."

"Basic training on how to recognize things like psychic paper and perception filters," Ianto snorted. "Not how to talk to people using the Force."

Jack's nose wrinkled. "I don't think the Force works like that," he pointed out, then grinned. "Anyway, your mind is a bit more awake than most others, as is mine."

"Let me guess—51st century advantages again?" asked Ianto.

"Got it in one—humans advance their natural abilities somewhat, and I had more training at the Time Agency. I've also traveled through the vortex, so I soaked up some artron energy too. Which means we're both a bit better than average, so I was able to reach out and brush your mind last night." Jack suddenly frowned and stepped back. "Did it make you uncomfortable? I didn't even ask. I won't do it again if—"

Ianto pulled him close again and stopped him with a kiss, hoping Jack didn't mind a bit of morning breath and relaxing when Jack eagerly returned the kiss. "It's fine," Ianto murmured when they stopped. "It was…well, it surprised me. I thought I was already dreaming. But it was nice. Good." He felt a blush creeping up his face.

Jack nodded in agreement. "I liked it too," he murmured. "I've never really shared something like that with anyone."

Ianto hesitated, but plunged on when he found his curiosity getting the better of him. "Is it something…well, something we could do again?"

"I think so," Jack replied. "I have to admit, I've only ever experienced telepathy once or twice, and that was with technological help. But like your healing power, I suspect its something we can practice."

"Practice?" Ianto repeated. He paused for effect, then started to nip kisses along Jack's neck, smiling to himself when Jack leaned back and let Ianto roam. "I like the sound of that. I seem to recall practicing a few other things in order to get better at them." Which was true, from the innocent to the kinky.

"I like to think of myself as a work in progress," Jack murmured. "Always trying to learn more, do more, be more…"

It was fairly clear they weren't talking about telepathy any longer, and Ianto found that after a good night's rest he was actually feeling playful. Which was odd, considering some of the difficult things they had said and done the day before, and that didn't even include Jack's confrontation with Gwen and Ianto's hurt, confused feelings about it.

"I could use some help in the shower," Ianto murmured. "You know, practice for the next time I'm exhausted and unable to wash myself."

"You're perfectly capable of washing yourself," Jack replied with a chuckle, but he as he was sucking a love bite behind Ianto's ear, it was fairly obvious that it was a token protest.

"Then maybe we can practice something else," Ianto said, letting his hands trail down toward the fly of Jack's trousers, still undone. One brush against Jack's erection was all it took.

"Practice makes perfect," he growled, and they stumbled into the en suite, laughing and kissing and touching all over as Jack shed his clothes once more, Ianto stepped out of his sleeping pants, and the warm water poured over them. Lips explored and tongues battled and hands roamed until they stood face to face, Ianto's hand wrapped around them both. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and reached out with his thoughts. He felt like an inexperienced child stumbling around in the dark, but he couldn't stop his overwhelming desire to experience the intimate contact again. Perhaps Jack was reaching out as well, because Ianto felt that warm presence he knew was Jack right there in his mind almost immediately.

Already surrounded by the warmth of Jack's body, the unexpected feeling of Jack's thoughts—surprised, aroused, tender, and affectionate—brushing against his own brought him to a sudden, blinding climax, the physical sparks of fire shooting through his body nothing compared to the emotional impact of two minds touching at such an intense moment. He felt rather than saw Jack's reaction as well, equally as powerful, leaving them both so stunned and breathless that they sank to the floor under the wet spray, unable to speak or move.

Jack roused himself first. "That was a hell of a first practice," he said, and they burst out laughing. Ianto pulled Jack into a long leisurely kiss before he confessed a thought he did not quite understand.

"I'm not scared anymore," he said, causing Jack to raise an eyebrow at the unusual statement. "I feel like I should be. You know my secret and have shown me there's even more to it, but for maybe the first time, I'm not afraid of it."

Jack's smile was so genuine it made his heart flip, and Ianto made a mental note to work on developing some sort of way to not telegraph everything he felt to Jack. He wasn't sure if he had to reach out to do it, like he just had, or if Jack could sense it automatically, but at moments like these, he wasn't sure he wanted Jack to know the depth of his feelings when Jack did something as simple as smile at him like that.

"I'm glad you're not afraid," Jack said. "Because it's amazing. _You_ are amazing."

Ianto laughed, hoping he was hiding his nerves well enough. "You only want me to make coffee now that I'm out of bed."

"Oh, you mean we have to go back to work after that?" Jack groaned. "Damn. I wanted to practice some more."

Ianto kissed him once before pulling him up. After a quick wash, he shut off the water and grabbed them both towels. As they were drying off, he asked the first of many more questions he knew he would have.

"Is it safe?" he asked, and Jack looked at him curiously. "What we did, opening our minds like that?"

Jack seemed to think about it as he padded back into his room and started to get dressed again. "I don't see why not. It's tiring, do you feel it?" Ianto nodded, and Jack gave him a wink. "More reason to practice—build up our stamina."

Ianto found one of his spare suits from the week before and borrowed a shirt from Jack, his mind turning over and over. "Should I talk to Owen?" he asked, and Jack looked at him in surprise.

"I thought you didn't want them to know?" he asked, and Ianto sighed.

"I don't, not really, though I feel better about it now. That could be the sex talking, I suppose. But maybe Owen should know? He can run some tests, make sure what happened last night doesn't have any side effects?"

Jack shook his head. "Ianto, you healed your cut. What kind of side effects could there possibly be?"

"What if it's like opening one door but shutting another?" asked Ianto. "I healed the cut, but…I don't know…it causes something else to go wrong? Besides sleeping for twelve hours straight."

Expecting Jack to laugh, Ianto was unsettled when Jack seemed to agree with him. "You could be right. I don't think that'll be the case, not with artron energy, but I suppose it's possible that as a human, using the energy internally rather than externally might have other consequences we should be aware of." He sighed and looked at Ianto. "But I hope not. It's an amazing gift. I'd hate for there to be conditions of use."

"Me too," Ianto murmured. "But now that there's more to it, I'd like to know for sure its safe and normal—or as normal as it can be." He paused as he glanced at the tie in his hand, then simply draped it around his neck with a shrug. "I'll have to take it off for Owen," he said when Jack gave him a questioning look. "But Jack…I'd like for it to be only Owen. Not the others, especially Gwen."

"That's fine," said Jack. "Why especially Gwen?"

"Too many questions, too many expectations," said Ianto. "And too much mothering." When Jack grinned, Ianto pierced him with a sharp look. "You know I'm right."

"Yes, you are," Jack said. "You usually are about those things." Finishing his own dressing, Jack sat on the edge of the bed and turned serious. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course," said Ianto. "I might even have an answer now that I'm well rested and satisfied."

Jack made a face, then patted the bed beside him. Ianto sat down and tried to match Jack's more somber tone. "Something's bothering you about this, isn't it?"

"Not this, no," said Jack. "But I was wondering…I hate to even ask because I think I know how you feel about it…do you think I did the right thing yesterday?"

"Ah," Ianto sighed. He knew Jack wasn't talking about the whale or the warehouse, and he'd been wondering when this would come up; they'd been so wrapped up in Ianto's issues that they hadn't had time to really address the situation with Gwen and the confrontation that had sent Ianto off to the caves to literally blow off steam the day before. He carefully gathered his thoughts. Perhaps because he had some distance from the situation now, he found it easier to bring them together and begin to voice his feelings on the matter without the same anger he'd felt the day before. He still felt the deep sense of hurt, made worse by the irrational fear of losing something he'd just found.

"I think, in the end, that yes, you did," Ianto replied softly, and he felt the tension drain from Jack, as if the other man was relieved that Ianto had agreed with him. Ianto had more to say, however.

"But I think that the way you both handled it was insensitive and upsetting for the rest of the team," Ianto continued. "Gwen said some very hurtful things to all of us, and it's not the first time. She thinks she's better than us, all because she has someone on the outside."

"It's different for her," Jack pointed out.

"It is, in a way," Ianto acknowledged. "But it doesn't make her any better than the rest of us. She doesn't need to rub our faces in it all the time, nor should she get to break the rules because of it. And she forgets that while the rest of us may not have partners outside of Torchwood—a fact which she pointed out several times when she started, as if it were the most shocking thing in the world after the existence of aliens—we do have friends and family we care about. I don't think she considers that when she throws around her relationship with Rhys all the time."

Jack was giving him a very thoughtful look. "You're right," he said, sounding as if he hadn't considered it in such a way. "She does forget that. What else?"

"What do you mean?" asked Ianto. Really, he had said more than he had thought he would, but Jack had asked, and the words had tumbled out.

"There's more, I can tell." He took Ianto's hand and squeezed. "Please don't be afraid to talk to me," he murmured. "Not again, not anymore."

Ianto laughed at that. "I'm not afraid, " he lied. "I am, however, highly aware of the interpersonal dynamics involved and don't want to cause more conflict." Which was true, even if a part of him wanted to continue regardless of the consequences. It was something he'd struggled with for a while, yet now he feared the resolution.

"I have no idea what you're talking about when you start using big words," Jack said. "But I want to hear your honest opinion, rather than let you bottle it up for the sake of team harmony."

"It's only the team I was referring to," Ianto replied.

"Oh." Jack took another breath. "Look, I know how it probably came across yesterday, but I need you to believe me, it's not like that."

"And how do you think it came across?" Ianto asked curiously.

"Owen accused me of fawning over her, falling for her big eyes and poor little me routine and giving in because of my feelings for her. I think Tosh agreed, but she wouldn't look at me let alone talk to me." Jack looked unusually contrite as he spoke, glancing anywhere but at Ianto. Frankly, Ianto was surprised that not only had Owen noticed such a thing, but that he had said it—and that Jack was acknowledging it. He suspected it was not easy for Jack, but then, such things never were.

"And was he right?" asked Ianto. He had his own interpretation of the confrontation and the complicated feelings it brought out, one that was probably a bit naive and optimistic, but he needed to know what Jack's thoughts were even if it destroyed his own. In spite of their shared experiences both the night before and that morning, and the closeness that seemed to have resulted, Ianto wasn't sure if he wanted to continue denying the possibility that he was wrong about Jack and Gwen. What he had with Jack was undefined, yet Jack had quite clearly spelled out exactly what Gwen meant to him during their shouting match. It hurt, to think he was less.

"No," said Jack with no hesitation. "At least, not in the way he was implying." He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "It may be like that for her, but it's not for me. Maybe once, I don't know…I care about her, yes, but I care about all of you. I don't want to lose any of you, and if you or Tosh or Owen had said the same thing—if you had threatened to walk out like that—I would have responded exactly the same way."

Ianto tried to frame his response as best as he could, without anger or sarcasm. "The thing is, Jack, I'm not sure the rest of us believe that."

"What do you mean?" asked Jack, and bless him, he was genuinely confused. Ianto knew what he was going to say might hurt Jack, but since Jack was asking, it needed to be said. Ianto might lie about cyber girlfriends and firepowers, but this was not something he wanted to lie about anymore. Not now that Jack and Gwen had made it a public issue.

"You once threatened to execute me," he said softly, and this time it was his turn to avoid Jack's eyes, even though he could feel the other man's intense gaze burning into him. "You killed Tosh's girlfriend. You fired Owen and kicked him out of the Hub." Deep breath. "It's hard to feel like we matter as much with a history like that, Jack. It's hard to believe that you'd think and say and do the same thing you did yesterday for the rest of us."

"But I would," Jack whispered, his voice agonized and broken. Ianto shook his head, determined to finish what he'd started.

"Maybe. You say that, but you have never, ever hurt Gwen. She knew your secret from the day she started as an innocent cop who stumbled upon us by accident. A dozen men died after she threw a scalpel on her first case, but she got nothing more than a hug for having a bad day. She snuck Suzie out of the Hub and got a cup of tea for almost getting herself killed. She's pushed you, punched you, doubted you, and defied you, and yet she's still here, still getting whatever she wants, whatever she demands. The rest of us have all suffered consequences she's not seen once."

Jack was quiet, but Ianto saw how he was staring at his hands, how tightly he was holding them together, as if trying to keep them from shaking, or punching a hole in the wall, perhaps.

"It's hard to watch it keep happening," Ianto continued. "Owen is right, Jack. You care for her, it's obvious, but because of that, Gwen is able to manipulate you far too easily. She gets away with more than we ever could, and you never call her on it, not like the rest of us. You proved that again yesterday."

Ianto gathered his final thoughts, his last scraps of insecurity, feelings he'd never thought to confide to Jack given the casual state of their relationship. Yet the subtle signals from their intimate conversations and brief telepathic encounters—Jack came back for him, Jack cared for him—seemed so contradicted by his actions with Gwen that Ianto needed to say something. He needed to know. He wanted Jack, but he did not want to be Jack's second choice, even after all that had happened earlier.

"I can't help but wonder why you behave one way with Gwen and another with the rest of us," he said. He realized he was including the others on the team because he did not want to speak of only himself and risk an answer he couldn't bear hearing. "Between her insensitive words and your response, it…" He sighed. "It hurts. And sometimes I'm not sure how much more we can all take."

"I'm sorry," Jack said, and his elbows fell to his knees, his head between his shoulders. "I never considered some of those things, made the connections and saw how it affects the team. How it would affect you."

"You're human," Ianto shrugged. He was surprised that he wasn't more uncomfortable with the direction of the conversation. Either it had been too long coming and was a relief to release, or he would break down later when everything—particularly his fledging relationship with Jack—collapsed around him. "You've got a blind spot when it comes to Gwen."

"It's not like that—" Jack started, but Ianto cut him off.

"I get it, I do," he said. "Look at my life, look at what I did for Lisa. I was blinded as well."

"That's completely different," Jack said, his voice defensive. He stood up and began pacing, obviously agitated. "You tried to save her. You were blinded by _love_. I care about Gwen, and maybe I have a blind spot because of it, but it's _nothing_ like you and Lisa. Don't compare it, not one bit."

"You don't have to explain," Ianto started, surprised to hear Jack defending Ianto's relationship with Lisa so vehemently, but Jack stopped him.

"No, now that you've brought it up, I do. You're right when you say I've never threatened her, never hurt her, never fired her." He laughed bitterly at that. "And god knows she probably should have been called on the carpet a dozen times by now. But I'm only trying to protect her." He turned toward Ianto, his eyes pleading. "It's important. She's the only one of us not touched by the dark side of Torchwood. I don't want to break her, Ianto. She doesn't deserve that."

"I know," Ianto replied, and he did. He had often suspected it as one of Jack's motivations in his relationship with Gwen. Jack had a fierce protective streak; he'd extended it to all of them at one time or another. And though his reasoning for the overprotectiveness he showed Gwen was sound, it was still an uncomfortable favoritism that Ianto would always question given his own undefined pace in Jack's life and bed. "But neither did we."

Jack nodded miserably. "I know that, I do. You all came to me broken, though. My job is to hold you together now, to help you, to heal you."

That surprised Ianto, that Jack viewed both the team and his role as leader in such a way. It made sense, however, given the history Tosh, Owen, and Ianto had brought with them, particularly compared to Gwen. Ianto wondered what it meant about his relationship with Jack and was about to ask when Jack continued.

"I'm selfish. I don't want to feel guilty if anything happens to Gwen on my watch. I can live vicariously through her normal life. And she contributes an almost innocent, unbroken perspective to the team we can use." He grimaced. "Unfortunately, that perspective has quite an attitude at times."

Ianto reached out and tugged Jack back down next to him. "First of all, you're not selfish. You may think your reasons are all about you, but deep down, they are as much about Gwen and the team as anything else."

Jack shrugged. "Second of all?"

"Second of all," said Ianto, and he hesitated before going on. "It's one thing to know your motivations and understand them. It's another to watch it play out the way it did yesterday. It was upsetting, Jack. And unprofessional." He paused, and pulled together one last thought, one he was fairly certain would resonate strongly with Jack. "And it's dangerous. She endangered us all in the field with her actions and did so without consequence. That's not only unfair, it's unsafe."

"I'm sorry," Jack whispered, and he sound genuinely sad. "You're absolutely right. What can I do to make it better?"

"She needs to be held to the same standards as the rest of us. You need to talk to her," said Ianto, and held up his hand when Jack started to interrupt. "We're all upset, Jack. She needs to know how her dismissiveness hurts us, but more importantly she needs to understand how her behavior affects our safety in the field."

"Isn't that something general support can handle?" Jack asked, eyeing him sideways. "Maybe slip her another copy of the handbook or something?" Ianto rolled his eyes in return.

"It's something the boss should handle," Ianto said. "And he'll do fine. He needs to realize that Gwen is a bit myopic: she sees to the heart of the matter with others, but with us—and especially with you—she usually misses what matters most."

Jack nodded somewhat miserably and with an air of defeat. "I meant what I said," he finally replied. "I don't want to lose anyone. This is the best team I've been part of." He swallowed and turned toward Ianto. "But I really don't want to lose you. Not now. Not after all we've been through, how far we've come." He took Ianto's hand and held it tight. "With how far we can still go."

Suddenly uncomfortable with any sort of implication Jack might be making, Ianto offered a small smile as he stood up, hoping to brush it off even though a part of him longed for it. "Then it's a good thing I don't plan on leaving Torchwood any time soon," he said. A look of hurt flashed across Jack's face as he stood to join Ianto.

"Right," he murmured, then frowned. "Ianto, I—" he started, but Ianto cut him off.

"Don't," he said softly. "It's fine, Jack. We should go and join the others. Didn't you say there was going to be Thai?"

"Yes, but—"

"—but it's on its way, so finish your snog already and get up here," called Owen's voice from Jack's office. "I need coffee."

Ianto rolled his eyes. "It's always about the coffee," he muttered good-naturedly. He expected a response from Jack, but turned to find him quiet and still frowning.

"What's wrong?" he asked, and Jack shook his head.

"I don't know, but I want to finish this later."

"Jack, I don't know what else there is—"

"We're not done," said Jack, his voice more stubborn than authoritative. "I want to work this out."

"It's fine," said Ianto with a sigh. Above them, Owen bellowed once more.

"It's not and I want to fix it," said Jack sharply. "I told you, I don't want to lose you."

"Teaboy's not going anywhere!" Owen shouted, and Jack opened his mouth to growl at the doctor. Ianto stopped him with a quick kiss.

"He's right, I'm not going anywhere," he said. Pulling on his professional face, he climbed up the ladder to Jack's office. "I'd hate to think what you lot would do without me."

"Have a nice memorial and hire that hot barrista from Starbucks," said Owen. "So if you're not dying, can you make some coffee already?"

Ianto raised an eyebrow. "Kailey?" he asked, lacing his voice with skepticism. When Owen leered, Ianto pretended to be offended. "She's not half as good, even if she does draw hearts and flowers in your foam."

"What about Owen's foam?" asked Jack as he came up behind his desk. Ianto could tell that Jack had his fake smile on. "Did I miss something good?"

Owen groaned. "God, no. Ianto is demonstrating the depraved sense of humor he's obviously picked up from you."

"I don't think I had much to do with it," Jack replied. "He was fairly depraved when I met him."

"Too much information," Owen said. His eyes flickered to Ianto's wrists, which were still wrapped with the gauze Jack had applied the night before. "Speaking of which, what happened there?" he asked sharply. "You two weren't playing with the handcuffs again, were you?"

"Again?" asked Ianto. Jack grinned.

"Great idea, thanks Owen."

"Seriously, what happened?" asked Owen, moving toward Ianto, who, for some reason, backed away.

"It's from the warehouse. Jack cleaned and bandaged it, I'm fine."

"How did you hurt your wrists?" Owen demanded, not letting up. "Were you hurt anywhere else?"

Jack answered for him. "He was tied up by those goons yesterday. He had some rope burns and a dislocated thumb. We cleaned and iced it, there's no need to get upset."

"I'm not upset," Owen replied with a shrug. "Just trying to do my job. Did you get that bruise on your face the same way?" Ianto raised a hand to his face in surprise, noting a tender spot near his temple. He hadn't even noticed it.

"We tusseled a bit," said Ianto. "Really, I'm fine."

Owen narrowed his eyes. "Tosh told me earlier that they fired a gun at you point blank. You sure?"

"It jammed," said Ianto. Owen was no longer looking at him, but at Jack with a surprised expression on his face. When Ianto turned, he barely caught a glimpse of the fury and fear in Jack's eyes before he smiled at them both as if nothing was wrong. But Owen was nodding to himself.

"I see," he said. "Oh, this makes Gwen's little strop even better." He grinned. "I cannot wait to give her a piece of my mind now."

"Leave it, Owen," Jack said. "She's not coming in today anyway."

"Another day off for fucking up. Does she even know Ianto had a gun pointed at his head?" Owen demanded, and Ianto glanced at him in surprise. "Because I'm still pissed off at her for that little show yesterday, and I would love to throw that in her face."

"What do you mean?" asked Ianto.

"She gets all bent out of shape about Rhys almost dying to protect her, when what were you doing? Almost dying yourself. And I bet she doesn't have a clue you were hurt either." He muttered something unflattering under his breath.

"She has every right to be upset about Rhys," Jack pointed out, and Owen waved his hand in the air.

"But no right to rub our noses in it," he snapped. "She's a real piece of work for storming back in here like she did, just to walk all over you and get her way again."

Jack's head snapped up, but this time Ianto answered for him.

"It's the right thing to do, with Rhys," he said, and waited for Owen's reaction.

"Letting him keep his memories? You're joking, right?" He stepped closer and lowered his voice. "Or were you not paying attention to the drama yesterday?"

"I was there, I saw it," Ianto said wearily. "And it was certainly dramatic. That's Jack and Gwen for you."

"Hey!" said Jack, and Owen snorted.

"I think we can trust Rhys," said Ianto. "And there are ways to ensure it. It may even help Gwen—make her a better agent if she can be open with her husband about it."

"And what if he goes blabbing to his mates?" demanded Owen. "Do we Retcon the whole pub?"

Ianto shrugged. "I don't think he will, do you? He's not going to risk Gwen's life so he can tell a few stories at his local." He paused for effect. "Maybe we should recruit him if you're worried."

"No!" exclaimed Jack and Owen at exactly the same time.

"You're taking the piss," Owen added, and Ianto grinned.

"Maybe. But now it's in the open, so at the very least, if we need a really big truck, we know where to get one."

Behind him, Ianto could sense Jack shaking his head. He gave Jack a wink that earned him a low growl, then turned back to Owen.

"So, coffee and lunch?" he asked. Owen stuck his hand into his pockets and jerked his head toward the door, following Ianto as he started out.

"After you," he said. "If you're sure you don't need me to look you over, make sure you're back to normal."

For some reason Owen's words stopped Ianto in his track, and he turned around abruptly, staring at Owen before throwing a slightly panicked look at Jack. He tried to cover it up, but Owen saw it all, reached around Ianto, and shut the door.

"All right, what's going on?" he asked. "And don't say nothing, because your poker face is far too good to slip up like that if it's nothing."

"It's nothing," started Jack, but Ianto shook his head. His concerns from earlier hit him full force, that this strange new ability to turn his power inward and heal himself might have an unwanted affect given how exhausted it had left him. He still didn't want the others to know about his offensive ability with fire, but he could share this much, although he dreaded the jokes Owen would certainly toss his way.

"Something else happened," Ianto started quietly.

"Ianto," Jack said, both a question and a warning.

"It's fine, Jack. I want to be sure." Taking a deep breath, Ianto held out his hand. "I cut my hand, but it healed."

Owen stepped closer and examined both of his hands. "Okay," he said, stretching it out. "What do you mean by healed, exactly? Did you put something on it, use one of my tech pieces?"

"Not exactly," said Ianto. "I thought about it, and it healed."

"Just like that?" asked Owen skeptically. "Prove it."

"No!" said Jack, coming to stand with them. "I saw it happen, exactly like he said. It completely drained him, though. That's why he slept so long, I could barely get him downstairs last night."

"So it wasn't an all night shag fest that knackered you?" asked Owen, and Ianto rolled his eyes.

"No, it wasn't, and Jack's right: it was exhausting. I could hardly move so I'd rather not demonstrate for the sake of curiosity."

"Then why are you telling me?" asked Owen, arms crossed over his chest. "Just letting the doctor know we have another weird medical situation on staff?"

Ianto stuttered a bit, slightly surprised by Owen's response. "I suppose. But I was so exhausted by it that I wanted to make sure nothing else was wrong—other side effects, that sort of thing."

Owen narrowed his eyes before turning to Jack. "You have anything to do with this?" he asked bluntly. Jack bristled.

"What does that mean?"

"You heal fast. Are you contagious?" he asked. "Did you pass it on to tea boy here?"

"I already told him no," said Jack, shaking his head. "It doesn't work like that. For one, I can't pass on my ability. I'm unique." He grinned, but Ianto saw the forced look of it. "And second, I don't control it consciously, it happens on its own. Ianto did this himself."

"How?" asked Owen, then turned and walked out of the office without waiting for an answer. "Come on. I want to look you over and run some tests before lunch."

"I don't want to be an experiment," said Ianto.

"I haven't experimented on Jack," Owen said. "I'm not going to experiment on you. But if you want to know if there are any other side effects besides the exhaustion, then I need to give you a physical and see what's going on."

Ianto sighed. He needed to be certain, so he followed Owen through the door. He wasn't sure what he expected the doctor to find, if he wanted there to be a reason he couldn't try again or if he wanted to be free to develop some of the things Jack had shown him. All he knew was that he had rarely been so nervous walking down to the medical bay.

* * *

Author's Notes:  
I hope that Jack and Ianto's conversation about *that* scene with Gwen was all you were looking for. The way I see it, Ianto is not as angry the next day, but more hurt, so if you were hoping he'd really tear Jack a new one, sorry! And if you were thinking Gwen would get an earful, she's not even in this story, so my apologies once more. But if you read the third chapter of my story 'Discovery' you will get your Ianto/Gwen confrontation. Anyway. One more chapter, and I'll probably post it tomorrow. I was going to post every other day, but the story is done and I'm sick of editing it and sitting on it. When I post something, I feel like I can truly move on, so you get the rest earlier than planned! Thank you for all the lovely comments and reviews, I really appreciate it! I did not expect it for a story like this. It's always the ones that feel out of my comfort zone that seem to get that response, though. Hm. Maybe I should come up with something really, really crazy. Oh wait, I'm too much of a canon girl for that. You can even squint at my AU stuff and see canon. I hope you enjoy the upcoming final chapter as well as whatever story the muse inspires next! Thanks again!


	5. Chapter Five: Resolution

Chapter Five - Resolution

Ianto followed Owen down to the medical bay, grateful that Gwen was out that day and that Tosh was apparently elsewhere in the Hub. He didn't think he could stand their sympathetic looks. Behind him, Ianto sensed Jack's concern. Owen's comment about another weird medical condition had stung, until Ianto realized that the doctor was concerned as well, if only as his doctor and in his usual annoyed yet curious way. And it was true, after all: Ianto was a freak.

They stepped into the medical bay, where Owen motioned Ianto toward the table and began shuffling around. Jack hovered close by, enough for Owen to throw him a look that was half curious, half annoyed, and which caused Jack to move even closer, laying a hand on Ianto's shoulder.

"You don't have to do this," he said softly. Ianto shook his head.

"It's okay, Jack. I want to make sure nothing is wrong, especially if I'm going to try it again."

"Really?" asked Jack. Ianto thought he heard both hope and fear in Jack's voice.

"It took me a while to learn how to control the…the other things," Ianto said, dropping his voice as Owen moved around them, collecting instruments and setting them on a nearby tray. "Maybe this is something that needs practicing as well, like you said earlier."

"Healing that cut laid you out," Jack pointed out. Owen interrupted then.

"Thought that was your job," he said. Both Jack and Ianto ignored him.

"I know," said Ianto. "But at the time, you seemed to think Owen might be out of a job because of it."

"Hey!" said Owen.

"I didn't say that," said Jack, not riling Owen like he usually would. "I made a joke about you having less to do around here if Ianto were able to treat his own injuries."

"Even the wizard kids at Hogwarts needed a nurse," muttered Owen, before glancing up to find both Jack and Ianto staring at him. "What? Sometimes I read mindless drivel."

"So you're offering to be my nurse instead of my doctor?" asked Ianto, and was pleased when Jack finally offered a genuine grin.

"Hell no," said Owen. "You don't want to see me in a short skirt."

"I do," said Jack, but Owen ignored him.

"All right, let's get this done already. Ianto, I want you to tell me exactly what happened—what you did, how it felt, the aftereffects, everything. And while you do that, I'm going to poke and prod you, take some blood, run some scans, and maybe if you're lucky, finally figure you out."

Ianto told Owen everything he could think of, leaving out anything about his firepower or possible telepathic ability. Jack continued to hover, but did not interrupt. Tosh appeared at the railing with lunch, frowning down at the three men but not interrupting until Jack sent her up to the conference room with the food. Ianto couldn't help but think that Gwen would have not only interrupted them, but done so with a fair amount of hysterics and hand wringing as well.

Owen drew some blood, set it to analyze, and then hurried them all upstairs to eat. Ianto started some coffee and brought it to the conference room, where Jack was asking Tosh about the Rift conditions for the day. She watched him closely as he sat down, until he told her he was fine before she could ask any questions. The concerned look on her face was replaced by curiosity as Jack asked Owen for his report.

"Teaboy shows signs of exhaustion, but is otherwise healthy. I'll know more when his blood tests are finished, but—"

"Wait," said Tosh, holding up her hand. "I don't actually know what's going on. Ianto's gone all morning and next thing I know he's in the medical bay. Are you all right?"

"I told you I'm fine, Tosh," said Ianto. "I was a bit banged up yesterday, but I'm all right." He paused and glanced at Jack, remembering what he'd said about telling the team. Tosh was his closest friend at the Hub, and he realized that she not only deserved to know, but he wanted to tell her. "It's just that something sort of strange happened afterward."

"Apparently teaboy is becoming more and more like Jack everyday," said Owen, his mouth half full. "Next thing you know he'll show up in military dress and start hitting on everyone."

"Everyone except you, Owen," Ianto replied smoothly. Tosh still looked confused, however.

"What happened? And was it normal strange or Torchwood strange?"

"I had a cut on my hand," said Ianto, not mentioning that Jack had put it there as an experiment of sorts. "And I was able to heal it. On my own."

She exchanged a look with Owen. "Like Jack?"

Ianto shrugged. "I don't think it's like that. I was thinking about it, almost willing it to heal, and it did. I could feel it happening. I really doubt I could bring myself back to life, though." It was an attempt at a joke, but apparently a poor one as only Owen snorted in reply. Tosh frowned and Jack looked up sharply.

"Let's not find out, okay?" he said.

"I wasn't planning on it anytime soon," Ianto murmured. It did make him wonder about the possibilities, though. It had been so draining to heal the cut on his hand that he doubted he'd be able to manage anything worse, like a gunshot wound or Weevil injury. But then again…if he practiced it, gained strength and control like he had with fire, maybe he could. And if he could heal himself of something serious, could he heal himself of something fatal? Could he stop himself aging?

"Oi, Ianto!" Owen called. "Stop thinking about it. If you get shot, I'm patching you up, not waiting for you to try out your new magic trick. Got it?"

"Of course," Ianto murmured, tucking back into his lunch and trying to set aside the thoughts running through his mind. He couldn't let himself hope, especially since he'd long resigned himself to a short life with Torchwood. It was the consequence of being a field agent with a secret agency that hunted aliens: it was exciting, but deadly. He could not allow himself to believe this new ability was any sort of escape from that fate.

Jack was eyeing him thoughtfully, though, and Ianto was certain that Jack was thinking the same thing at that moment. And knowing that Jack was thinking it allowed Ianto to fully embrace it: he was able to manipulate the energy that kept Jack alive. Why couldn't it do the same for him?

Pushing his plate away, Ianto excused himself and hurried out of the conference room. He paused at the medical bay, his frantic mind staring down at the needles and other surgical instruments, wondering if he should try again, so he would know. Maybe the previous night was a fluke. Maybe he couldn't heal more than a scratch. It was an impossible dream, to think he might have a few more years than expected, if not a lifetime. He might actually outlive his mother rather than let her bury a son, be able to watch his niece and nephew grow up. He could stay with Torchwood and make the world a safer place, stay with Jack and—

He turned abruptly and hurried toward the lift to the tourist office. Glancing around, searching for release, he grabbed his coat and hurried out onto the Quay instead, his heart racing. He immediately regretted it, as he was outside now, in public, and he wanted nothing more than to let go of all his confusion, much as he had last night in the cave with his anger. Only he couldn't, because there were people around, normal people untouched by things like aliens and artron energy. He draped himself over the railing and stared into the water, hoping it would calm him. Water put out fire, after all.

He hadn't even known he was doing it, gathering it in and releasing it; it was almost subconscious. As he stared into the murky depths of the bay, however, it began bubbling—boiling. He grinned when he realized it, uncaring of who might see. Why would anyone assume it was him anyway? He could be simply staring at a big fish. He brought his hand into one of the positions his teacher had showed him, and the bubbles grew and spread. He almost threw his head back and laughed hysterically—what had he said to Jack about bubbles the night before?— but a hand on his arm stopped him.

"Neat trick," said Owen. Ianto started in surprise, dropped his hand, and the bubbles slowly dissipated.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Ianto replied, standing up straighter.

"So you can heal a cut and boil water, all with your mind?" asked Owen. "Neat. What else?"

"I wasn't—" Ianto started, but Owen cut him off.

"Leave off the bullshit, Ianto. I could tell something else was going on from the moment you said something about your hand. So how about you come clean with your doctor so I can help you?"

Ianto stared at him, surprised at both Owen's forthright declaration and offer of help. He blustered a defense. "Why are you out here?" he asked. "I would have thought you'd send Tosh to check up me."

"I insisted," said Owen with a shrug. "Said I'd grab something in case you were having a panic attack and bring you back to do the touchy-feely stuff with her and Jack."

"There is no touchy-feely stuff," Ianto muttered.

"But there's more to all this," Owen said, gesturing from Ianto's hands to the water. "Does Jack know?"

Ianto sighed. "Yes, he knows."

"Good. Now tell me." Ianto offered an incredulous look. "I'm serious, Ianto. Tell me what's going on so I can help you. Because a teammate developing the sudden ability to heal himself and boil water is not normal, and I want to make sure it's not hurting you."

"It's not," Ianto replied. "At least, I don't think so."

"Your blood test came back, and among other things, your vitamin B levels are way down. You'll need shots. So let me be the judge of what's okay and what's not okay," Owen snapped. "And in order to do that, I need to know. What else is going on?"

Ianto glanced over his shoulder. There weren't many people around, and he knew the CCTV couldn't pick them up at that angle. He moved closer to the rail again and motioned Owen to join him, so they were shoulder to shoulder facing into the bay. Bringing his hand up before them, Ianto concentrated and brought for a tiny tongue of flame. He couldn't help but smile; it was one of the smallest he'd conjured, almost cute in its dancing eagerness upon his palm. He'd expected a gasp of surprise or even fear from Owen, and was slightly disappointed though also relieved by the doctor's reaction.

"Cool," he said, watching with curious fascination. "And Torchwood gets weirder yet. Can I call you fireboy now?"

"No," Ianto said, smiling to himself as he let the flame die out. "One annoying nickname is enough."

"But this one is even better, especially since most of us hardly ever drink tea," said Owen. He turned around and leaned against the raining. "So you can make fire. How long? Or did this start yesterday too?"

"No," said Ianto, still gazing out over the bay. "It started a while ago."

"And you didn't think it was worth mentioning to your doctor?"

Ianto glanced sideways at him and shrugged. "I didn't think it was worth mentioning to anyone," he replied. "I was a bit persona non grata when it started. And there were never any side effects."

There was a flash of surprise in Owen's eyes before he nodded. "But now there are, and you want to be sure everything checks out?"

"I suppose. I wasn't planning on saying anything, to anyone." He took a breath. "Jack only knows because he caught me yesterday. Twice."

"I don't even want to know how that went over," Owen murmured, and Ianto nodded in agreement.

"Not particularly well the first time. The second time was after Gwen stormed out. He was surprisingly all right with it by then."

"What, he didn't threaten to Retcon your arse back to puberty for keeping secrets again?" Owen asked in mock surprise. There was no malice to his voice, though the words were hard to hear, if only because Ianto had feared the same.

"Maybe Gwen's little tirade helped me out there," Ianto offered with a bitter laugh. "He couldn't very well refuse to Retcon her and Rhys, but then turn around and wipe my memory." He shook his head and looked down. "Only sometimes I think he could."

Owen was quiet for several moments, as if gathering his thoughts. Which was unusual, as Ianto had rarely known him to be careful with his words. "Look, I know you two are…doing whatever you're doing…"

"Shagging?" Ianto offered. Owen met his eyes.

"Jack said you were dating."

"Really?" replied Ianto, surprised. "When did he say that?"

"When I asked him about it last week," Owen replied with a shrug. "Thought something was going on when we sent Tommy back. There were way too many looks and touches."

"There were not!" Ianto protested. Owen grinned.

"I have no idea, Tosh pointed it out over ice cream. So I asked Jack."

"You could have asked me," Ianto said after another moment's silence.

"I thought Jack's answer would be more interesting," Owen replied. Ianto thought about that.

"And was it?"

Owen gazed out over the water. "Having had yours, yes. He was more willing to admit something's going on." When Ianto didn't reply, Owen continued. "He looked right at you when he said he came back for you, you know. Did he tell you where he went?"

Ianto hesitated, then nodded. Owen cocked his head. "That's says a lot right there. He hasn't said shit to the rest of us, even Gwen, and she badgers him constantly. I know because I badger her. It's fun."

"You're incorrigible."

"It's my boss, he's a bad influence on me sometimes," Owen deadpanned, and Ianto laughed out loud. "Look, as much as it pains me to say it, it sounds like it's more than shagging. I mean, you're obviously not buying a house and moving in together, but dating is a bit more than casual sex, yeah?"

Ianto had never thought he'd be standing outside talking to Owen of all people about this. He'd always assumed it would be Tosh, or some friend he finally had a chance to catch up with and could get an unbiased opinion from. Only he hadn't mentioned anything to Tosh, and he hadn't had a chance to meet with any old friends. And so it was Owen—loud, brash, arrogant Owen—who was trying so hard to be sensitive and it was very strange. Maybe stranger than throwing fire.

"Look, I appreciate your curiosity or concern or whatever," Ianto started, holding up his hand when Owen pulled a face, "but I don't know what to say. Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. It sort of is what it is and works for us."

Owen looked at him skeptically. "And you're all right with that? Because you know how Jack is—"

"Yeah, Owen, I know how Jack is," Ianto said wearily. "We've been at this for over a year."

Owen blew out a frustrated breath. "I'm not trying to pry. I'm trying to…well, I'm trying to look out for you. This stuff with Jack and Gwen is bloody annoying, and I'm not the one dating him. Plus it would be damn awkward if you two had a bitter breakup and the rest of us had to tip toe around the Hub for the rest of our short careers here."

Ianto let his head fall back. "But that's the rub, isn't it?" he said, staring up into the sky. "Our short, doomed, Torchwood careers. Doesn't matter what it is or isn't, or where it's going, because I won't be around long enough to worry about it."

"You sure about that?"

Ianto's head snapped up. "Ianto," said Owen, "I'm not stupid, and neither is Jack. We're all thinking the same thing. If you can heal yourself with this nifty new superpower, you might have a longer tenure at this than the rest of us."

Ianto shook his head, the panic beginning to claw at him once more. He strode away, but Owen followed, hands tucked into his pockets. "I've got that sedative if you need it," he murmured so only Ianto could hear him.

"Sod off," Ianto replied half-heartedly.

"It's why I'm here and not Jack. I've got the good drugs. Do you need them?" He put his hand on Ianto's arm and stopped him from walking away. Ianto closed his eyes, tried to settle his racing heart once more.

"No, I'll be fine," he said. "It's just that the thought of…of all of this…is really overwhelming. My life has changed so many times since I joined Torchwood—since I came back to Cardiff—but I didn't realize how much until I was sitting at that table a few minutes ago."

"Look," said Owen, toeing the ground and squinting into the sun. "If it's any consolation, I seriously doubt you're immortal now."

Ianto's laugh came out slightly hysterical. "I know that, Owen. I'm not thinking I am."

"No, but you're thinking that if you can heal yourself like Jack, you might be around for a lot longer than you thought. And we know Jack will be around, so you're probably wondering what that means for the two of you."

"There is no two of us," Ianto protested.

"Oh, bollocks," said Owen, rolling his eyes. Then he pierced Ianto with a sharp stare and caught him off guard. "What did he say about Gwen?"

"Wait, what?" asked Ianto, thrown by the non sequitur.

"I bet you had a nice little chat about that scene yesterday," Owen continued casually, no doubt completely aware of what he was doing even if Ianto wasn't sure. "I'd be quite put out if it were me, but then again, if there is no two of you, maybe it didn't bother you." He smirked and met Ianto's surprised gaze. "So did you?"

"Did I what?" Ianto asked, still not following.

"Did you talk about it? Fight about it? About Gwen and how he lets her manipulate him into doing whatever she wants, including letting a security risk roam free."

Now it was Ianto's turn to roll his eyes. "I really doubt Rhys is a security risk, Owen."

"Not the point," said Owen. "She looks at him with her big doe eyes and then proclaims her undying devotion to the poor sod she's engaged to marry while getting him to do whatever she wants. Hell, she was doing the same thing a year ago and sleeping with me on top of it all."

"Owen—" Ianto started.

"And he looks at her and lets her get away with almost anything. But if he's with you, properly dating and all that bullshit, then I think I know you well enough to know you're not the type to accept a wandering eye. Especially when it's aimed at a coworker."

"You don't know me that well, Owen," Ianto replied sharply, even though Owen was dead right.

"You fought like hell to keep the woman you loved alive in spite of all the odds being against you. That says a lot."

"I slept with Jack while I was trying to save her," Ianto pointed out. "What does that say?"

"He's Jack Harkness," Owen shrugged. "Good for you. But the fact that you picked up again when he came back also says something."

"We picked up again right before Suzie was resurrected," Ianto said. "So again, your point is meaningless and what was it again?"

Owen looked slightly surprised at that. "You know, I'm not sure what my point was anymore. You keep throwing a spanner in the works."

"I'm good like that. And since you have no point to make, we should get back to the Hub."

Owen turned and motioned him forward. They walked slowly, quiet with their thoughts for a few minutes. "I was asking about Gwen. Did you and Jack talk about Gwen?"

Ianto nodded, deciding there was little point in denying it. "We did."

"I hope you chewed him out, yeah?"

"He brought it up," Ianto pointed out. "He asked me if I thought he did the right thing. And then…I didn't chew him out, no, but I did tell him how it looked and felt for the rest of us."

"You mean, like we're all worthless shit compared to her?" asked Owen bitterly.

"Exactly. And he seemed surprised." Ianto shook his head in wonder. "I think he was aware of how it looked to me personally as his…as the person he's sleeping with, but professionally he didn't seem to understand how dangerous and disrespectful it was for the team, or how bad it is for morale."

"What did he say about it personally?" asked Owen, trying and failing to hide his curiosity.

"He said it wasn't like that for him, even if it was for her."

"'Course it is for her," Owen muttered. "I wonder what Rhys thought about meeting Jack. Poor sod. Bad enough he's stuck with Gwen, now he's messed up with Torchwood."

"I thought Rhys seemed like a decent bloke," Ianto said, surprised to be offering a positive opinion. Then again, he certainly wouldn't have said so to Jack. "Kept his head on straight, and he did take a bullet for her."

"Too good for her, then," said Owen. Ianto wondered about the man's extremely negative opinion.

"You in a bad place with Gwen?" he asked.

Owen shook his head. "Not really, no. I'm pissed off that she spends half her time second guessing Jack and the other half making moony eyes at him, all while bitching about our lack of humanity. Her insubordination is never called out, and it could get one of us killed in the field."

"I said as much to Jack," said Ianto. "I think he'll talk to her."

"And she'll bat her eyelashes and he'll wag his eyebrows and that's that," Owen replied bitterly. "No offense, mate, but I'm sick of their game. I don't know how you stand it." He paused. "You're good for him, you know."

"Owen—"

"No, really. I can see it, sometimes. If I squint," he added. "It makes sense. Them…that doesn't make sense."

"It does, in a way," said Ianto. He couldn't believe he was about to defend Jack's complicated relationship with Gwen to Owen. "He's attracted to her, and you of all people can't fault him for that." Owen stuck out his tongue and Ianto continued. "He doesn't want to hurt her. He sees her as the only one of us who isn't broken, and he doesn't want to be the one to break her. I don't think he could stand the guilt."

"So it's all right to treat her one way and the rest of us another?" Owen replied. "Because I have no doubt if I was in his face like that, he'd Retcon me before I could finish my parting sentence. He threw me out of the Hub after I opened the Rift and saved his arse from 1941!"

"He was being manipulated," said Ianto. They were standing outside the tourist office now. "We all were. Look, Owen, I don't like it anymore than you do. I may understand it, but it's still awkward and uncomfortable. I wish she'd stop coming on to him while going on about her fiancée, and I wish he'd stop looking at her like he wants to take her up on it, but there's nothing I can do. I don't want to lose whatever it is I have with him because I'm too worried about what he may or may not have with Gwen."

"I don't have anything with Gwen," said a quiet voice behind him, and Ianto whirled to see Jack standing there at the door to the tourist office. "And you don't have to worry that I will."

Ianto swore silently as Owen bolted around them into the tourist office, muttering under his breath. "Later, mate. See me if you need anything."

Jack watched him hurry back into the Hub before turning back to Ianto. "You didn't finish your lunch," he said.

"It's fine," Ianto replied. "I'm not hungry."

"You should eat, keep your strength up."

"I'm fine, Jack," Ianto repeated.

"Except for running out in the middle of a meeting," Jack said. "And uncharacteristic heart-to-hearts with Owen. Come on, how about some coffee and a pastry? My treat."

"Big spender," Ianto murmured.

"And then I'm taking you home," Jack said, holding up his hand when Ianto started to protest. "No arguments. Tosh said she and Owen would cover for the afternoon, and Gwen's on call for tonight." He paused. "I think Tosh wants to bring you dinner later, badger you for a few hours to make sure you're all right."

"I don't need a babysitter," Ianto sighed. "I don't want one."

"I know," Jack said. "You want to figure this out by yourself, deal with it like you have been since it started. But we're here to help you, and it's not a sign of weakness to accept dinner with a concerned friend." He reached down for Ianto's hand and held it tight as they walked. "Just like it's not weakness to let me take you home and invite myself back for the night."

"Jack—"

"Please," he said. "Have dinner with Tosh, and I'll finish my paperwork at the Hub, but I'd like to come back if you'll have me. I want to be there for you." He gazed at Ianto with an intense look in his clear blue eyes. "Like you've been there for me."

Ianto leaned forward to kiss him, unable to resist even though they were out in public. "Of course I'll have you tonight," he said with a teasing lilt to his voice, hoping to put the more serious tone behind them. They were good at sweeping the important things under the rug, after all.

Jack ignored the innuendo. "And you'll let me take you home for the afternoon?" he pressed.

"Yeah, that's fine," Ianto said. "I'm still tired and my brain…between the healing and the telepathy, my mind is running nonstop trying to figure it all out, so maybe some time to sift through things would help."

"I know what you're thinking about," Jack said softly.

"What I'm going to do when you come back tonight?" Ianto replied, once more going for deflection.

"Ooh, good to know you've got plans," Jack laughed. "I know why you ran out, because I've been thinking about it too."

"It's not something either one of us should even consider," said Ianto.

"Probably not," Jack agreed, to Ianto's surprise and disappointment. "But you should know that the thought of being able to spend more time with you…I like that thought. A lot."

"Jack—"

"We didn't finish earlier," Jack said. "In my room. I heard what you said to Owen, and I meant what I said before he ran off. There's nothing with Gwen and there never will be. And I will talk to her about her attitude." Ianto gave him a surprised look. "I want my team to feel safe. And more importantly, I want my team to feel respected. I want _you_ to feel respected."

"She might not take it well," said Ianto, not knowing what else to say. Jack shrugged.

"Or she might surprise us all. Either way, it's not your problem. It's my job as the boss, right?"

Ianto nodded silently. "All right," said Jack. "Let's go. You let me know if I need to grovel any more. I don't want to lose what I have with you because you're still too worried about what I don't have with Gwen."

Ianto rolled his eyes as Jack threw his earlier words back at him. He did not reply as they walked along the Quay, hand in hand. They'd get their coffee, go home, and spend the night together. They'd certainly shag, and probably talk more, though for two blokes who didn't talk much they'd done an awful lot over the last twenty-four hours. Ianto was comforted by Owen's concern, by Tosh's friendship, but more than anything, he was touched, humbled, and thrilled by Jack's steadfast understanding and support.

He reached out with his mind, much as he had earlier that morning. "Thank you," he thought, not sure whether Jack would hear him or feel him. It didn't matter because Ianto wanted to express it, and so he did. There were many other things he'd probably never say, but a simple thank you he could manage.

"You're welcome," said Jack out loud. "We'll get through this." Ianto felt wonder and affection brush against his mind and smiled to himself. Jack must have felt his sense of skeptical amazement because he wrapped his arm around Ianto's shoulder and pulled him close. "Together," he whispered in his mind.

Yes, they'd get through it together. And Ianto suspected things would be quite different when they did.

* * *

Author's Note:

The End! This is very much an origin story, when you think about it. With lots of talking, which tends to be true of most of my work. I started another chapter a while ago, but the story stalled when I had no idea where to go next. Then I finally realized that *this* was the end of the story…for now. That unpublished chapter will be absorbed into the sequel. Yes, I'd dearly like to write a follow up with a bit more action, though I can't say when I'll get to it. In my mind it'll pick up about a month or so after this story so that Ianto has a chance to get to know some of his new abilities a little bit better, and we don't have to read mindless drivel about him practicing it. I already have lots of ideas, so look for it someday! In the meantime, I'm not done writing yet, even if it's not in this 'universe.' I've still got some WIPs to wrap up, plus several other bits and bobs sitting on my desktop begging to be attended to, including a combination Adrift/Cyberwoman story. Plus all sorts of great plot bunnies that Taamar and I throw a carrot to every so often. Thank you for reading this unusual tale, I hope you enjoyed it!


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